ROSEMONT, Ill. – McKendree University softball opened play here Thursday evening in the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Dome Invitational hosted by Lewis University by dropping two games at The Dome at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex.
 
The Bearcats opened the three-day event with a 6-5 loss to Ferris State, before falling 3-2 in its second game of the first day of action to Wayne State (Mich.) University.
 
In Thursday's two games, the Bearcats (3-3) offense struggled to string together timely hits as they finished the day with 11 hits and scored a total sevens, but they stranded a total of 15 runners in the two games, including nine against Ferris State.
 
The Bearcats first game against Ferris State (3-4) was the second meeting between the two teams as McKendree opened the 2022 season last Saturday with a 20-0 win over the Bulldogs at the Music City Invitational hosted by Trevecca Nazarene.
 
Unlike the first game, when the Bearcats scored 20 runs on 20 hits, including six extra-base hits, the Bearcats had six hits, including two extra base hits in Thursday's loss.
 
McKendree got the scoring started in the bottom of the first inning as freshman shortstop Heaven Lawrence (Marion, Ill./Marion) led off with a home run over the fence in left field to give the Bearcats a 1-0 lead.
 
Ferris State, though, would find the scoreboard in the top of the third inning as they recorded three hits and three runs to take a 3-1 lead off of freshman pitcher Sydney Bires (Carlinville, Ill./Gillespie), who started in the circle for the Bearcats.
 
The Bearcats would get one of those runs back in the bottom of the fourth as Lawrence drove home her second run of the game on an RBI groundout. Lawrence's groundout scored junior third baseman Kelsey Sachs (Troy, Mo./Troy Buchanan), who led off the inning with a walk, moved to second on bunt by sophomore second baseman Natalie Schellert (Wentzville, Mo./St. Dominic) and moved to third on an infield single by freshman centerfielder Austen Vickery (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township).
 
Ferris pushed its lead to 6-2 in the top of the fifth inning thanks to 3-run homer by Katelyn Gabos off of junior Emily Mudd (Hillsboro, Mo./Hillsboro), who relieved Bires' in the circle in the fourth inning.
 
McKendree, though, would come right back and score three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to pull within 6-5. In the inning, junior leftfielder Morgan Andrews (Creal Springs, Ill./Marion) brought home the first run on her single to left, while the second run came home on a fielder's choice by Schellert and the third run scored when Lawrence reached on an error by FSU second baseman Josie Prince.
 
In the bottom of the sixth, the Bearcats got the tying run on base thanks to a single to right center off the bat of junior right fielder Olivia Stansbury (Lafayette, Ind./Purdue Fort Wayne) with one out, but FSU reliever Kristie Gray would strike out the next two Bearcat hitters in order to leave the tying run on base and then in the seventh, Gray would retire the Bearcats in order to end the game.
 
Andrews had two of the Bearcats' six hits, while Lawrence drove home all three runs. Sachs and graduate student first baseman Paige Hayden (Independence, Mo./Fort Osage) drew a total of five walks in the game as Sachs walked three times and Hayden walked twice.
 
Evelyn Blood and Amara Zukowski paced the Bulldogs with two hits each, while Gabos had three RBI in the win.
 
Bires (0-1) took the loss in the circle as she tossed three innings and allowed four hits and three runs, while walking two and striking out four. Mudd made her debut in the circle and she tossed 1.1 innings and allowed three hits and three runs, while walking one and striking out one.
 
Mckenzie Cleland (3-0) earned the win for the Bulldogs as she pitched four innings and allowed three hits and two runs, while walking four and striking out two.
 
Meanwhile, in the second game against Wayne State, the Warriors jumped in front 1-0 in the top of the first as they used three hits and plated a run on an RBI single off the bat of Avieri Ludwig off of sophomore pitcher Ellie Quaethem (Washington, Mo./Washington).
 
The Bearcats would take the lead in the bottom of the third thanks to a 2-run homer by Stansbury over the fence in right field. The homer was the first hit of the game for the Bearcats off of WSU pitcher Alexis Bonk.
 
Prior to the hit, Bonk had walked four hitters, including loading the bases in the seconds thanks three walks.
 
The Warriors tied the game in the top of the fourth as they used three hits and scored its run on an infield single by Abby Favela.
 
Wayne State (1-1) would take the lead in the top of the sixth as they took advantage of a hit, a Bearcat error and another fielding blunder on a ground ball to plate a run on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Rainey Psenicka.
 
In the bottom of the sixth, Sachs reached on an error by WSU centerfielder Gabby Kaple, but she would be stranded at second after Bonk would retire the next two Bearcats in order to end the inning.
 
The Warriors would put two runners on base in the seventh against Quaethem, but she would end the threat getting Mady Ruczybski to fly out to right to end the inning.
 
Stansbury led the Bearcats with two of their five hits in the loss. 
 
Shelby Miller, Favela and Ludwig each had two hits to pace the Warriors as they had 11 in the game.
 
Quaetehm (1-2) took the loss in the circle for the Bearcats as she tossed all seven innings and allowed 11 hits and three runs, while striking out five and walking none.
 
Bonk (1-0) earned the complete game for the Warriors as she allowed five hits and two runs, while walking four and striking out seven.
 
The Bearcats will continue play in the event with two games on Friday, Feb. 25 against Wisconsin-Parkside at 11 a.m. and ninth-ranked Grand Valley State at 1:30 p.m.