(SPRINGFIELD, Ill., April 27)—The McKendree College softball team wrapped up day one play at the American Midwest Conference Tournament with an 8-0 victory Friday evening against Hannibal-LaGrange College at the Land of Lincoln Complex in Springfield, Ill.

 

The top-seeded Bearcats pounded out 15 hits while junior right-hander Colene Pogue (Mason, Ill./Waltonville) (Mason, Ill./Waltonville) threw a two-hit shutout for the win. Pogue did not walk a batter and struck out two. In its two AMC Tournament victories, McKendree has outscored its opponents by a margin of 21-0.

 

With the win, McKendree moves to 36-12 overall and advances to a winner’s bracket contest Saturday at 2 p.m. against No. 3 seed Columbia College. The winner will reach Sunday’s tournament championship contest. The Bearcats swept the Cougars just 10 days ago in Lebanon to wrap up the AMC regular-season championship.

 

The Bearcats’ trio of sophomore catcher Angie Maue (Trenton, Ill./Wesclin HS) (Trenton, Ill./Wesclin), junior outfielder Molly Reed (Carrollton, Ill./Carrollton) (Carrollton, Ill./Carrollton) and junior shortstop Courtney Aldridge (Dupo, Ill./Dupo) (Dupo, Ill./Dupo) maintained the torrid offensive pace they set in a 13-0 game one victory over Harris-Stowe State University. Maue went 3-for-3 with three RBI against Hannibal-LaGrange, while Reed was also 3-for-3 with four runs scored for the second straight contest. Aldridge hit safely in all three trips to the plate against the Trojans with an RBI. The threesome has combined to go 15-for-17 with 11 runs scored and 14 RBI.

 

McKendree grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Reed reached on a one-out single and scored on a double by junior infielder Rachael Ostertag (O' Fallon, Mo./Francis Howell) (O’Fallon, Mo./Francis Howell). Maue added an RBI single in the second inning, while two runs scored on passed balls to give the Bearcats a 4-0 advantage.

 

In the fourth inning, Reed singled and stole second base before Maue delivered a run-scoring single to boost the McKendree lead to 5-0. The Bearcats closed out the win by plating three runs in the fifth inning. Ostertag drove in the first run of the frame by reaching on a fielder’s choice before back-to-back RBI singles by Maue and Aldridge finished off the victory.