ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Bellarmine softball suffered another two-loss day at the Lindenwood Invite, falling 8-0 in the first game to host Lindenwood before losing a tight battle 1-0 in game two to Western Illinois.
The Knights (5-9) battled in both games but couldn't produce timely hits to get the offense going despite another day of solid pitching and defense.
Game One
The first inning came and went with neither team getting much going offensively.
Lindenwood broke the stalemate in the second, scoring two runs on an RBI double to take a 2-0 lead.
The Knights held Lindenwood in check in the third, but the Lions added on again in the fourth, tacking on four runs thanks to five hits and two defensive errors by Bellarmine.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Lions dealt the final blow, tallying two more runs to extend their lead to 8-0, invoking the run-rule.
Freshman
Brooke Shewmaker and junior
Serenity Shemwell tallied the only hits of the game for Bellarmine, recording a single each.
Game Two
Game two was a pitcher's duel from the first pitch to the last.
Bellarmine nearly broke the scoreless tie in the top of the sixth inning after a one out triple off the bat of Shewmaker, but the threat would come to pass.
The lone run of the game finally came in the bottom the sixth when Western Illinois took advantage of Bellarmine error, taking an extra-base on steal before eventually scoring on a sacrifice fly to take 1-0 lead.
Despite taking the loss, junior
Claire Lehmkuhler was brilliant in the pitcher's circle. Lehmkuhler tossed her third complete game of the season, hurling 6.0 innings while allowing just the single run on six hits with six strikeouts and no walks. Lehmkuhler faced just 24 batters in the game, three more than minimum.
Bellarmine will wrap up the weekend with one final game tomorrow, Sunday, March 2. The Knights will face off against Western Illinois for a second time with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow @BUKnights on X, Instagram and Facebook.
