(LEBANON, Ill. – April 14) – The McKendree University softball team lost game one of an American Midwest Conference doubleheader with Harris-Stowe State University Tuesday, before senior pitcher Colene Pogue (Mason, Ill./Waltonville) (Mason, Ill./Waltonville) threw a two-hitter in game two to earn the Bearcats a split with a 12-0 win in five innings.
McKendree, 18-12 overall and 6-6 in the AMC, will play their final regular season AMC doubleheader Wednesday, when they host University of Illinois at Springfield at 2 p.m.
McKendree took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning in game one, when junior catcher Angie Maue (Trenton, Ill./Wesclin HS) (Trenton, Ill./Wesclin) hit a double to left field that scored junior centerfielder Kayla White (Buncombe, Ill./Vienna HS) (Buncombe, Ill./Vienna). The Bearcats fell behind in the bottom of the inning as Harris-Stowe scored four runs, highlighted by a two-run home run by Carissa Mudge, to take a 4-1 lead.
McKendree scored one run in the top of the seventh, but stranded a runner on first and third to end the game with a 4-2 loss. McKendree had eight hits in the game and was led by senior leftfielder Molly Reed (Carrollton, Ill./Carrollton)'s (Carrollton, Ill./Carrollton) 2-4 effort at the plate. Junior pitcher Amy Quirin (Belleville, Ill./Belleville West HS) (Belleville, Ill./Belleville West) fell to 6-6 on the season striking out five in six innings pitched.
In game two, McKendree took advantage of five Harris-Stowe errors and scored at least two runs in ever inning that they batted to cruise to the 12-0 win.
White and freshman third baseman Nicole Steele (Danville, Ill./Schlarman) (Danville, Ill./Schlarman) each scored on errors in the bottom of the first inning to take an early 2-0 Bearcat lead. Reed scored on an error by the pitcher in the second inning, and a single by senior designated player Ashley Wombacher (Breese, Ill./Breese Mater Dei) (Breese, Ill./Mater Dei) scored two to build the lead to 5-0.
The Bearcats scored four in the third inning, including two on a double by White and one on a liner by senior Renee Lanenga (Tinley Park, Ill./Tinley Park) (Tinley Park, Ill./Tinley Park), to push the score to 9-0. An RBI single by Maue and a two RBI double by sophomore second baseman Christine Juehne (Trenton, Ill./Wesclin HS) (Trenton, Ill./Wesclin) put things out of reach for the Hornets, ending the game 12-0.
Pogue improved to 6-4 on the season with the shutout win, striking out three and only walking two in five innings. White and Maue both had two hits in the game, with White having two RBI and two runs and Maue tallying one RBI and one run scored.
-McK-
