JOPLIN, Mo. – McKendree University softball concluded play here Saturday at the Lions Classic held at the Pat Lipira Softball Complex by posting two wins over Missouri Western State University.
 
The Bearcats (6-8) opened the day with a 3-1 win in the opener, before posting an 11-9 win in the second game to the Griffons, who fell to 6-10 on the season.
 
In the opener, the Bearcats would score a run in the bottom of the first inning on an RBI single to left center by junior second baseman Skyler Davis (Muncie, Ind./UT-Martin). Davis' single allowed freshman shortstop Heaven Lawrence (Marion, Ill./Marion), who walked to lead off the inning, moved to second on a stolen base and reached third on bunt before scoring the first run of the game.
 
The score would remain 1-0 in favor of the Bearcats until the bottom of the fifth when senior right fielder Sidney Larsen (Des Moines, Iowa/Ellsworth CC) drilled a pitch from Sydney Rader over the fence in right center for her first homer of the season and give the Bearcats a 2-0 lead.
 
McKendree pushed its lead to 3-0 in the bottom of the sixth on a lead-off homer by junior leftfielder Olivia Stansbury (Lafayette, Ind./Purdue Fort Wayne). The homer by Stansbury was her team leading fourth of the season.
 
The Griffons would prevent a shutout by sophomore pitcher Ellie Quaethem (Washington, Mo./Washington) in the top of the seventh as Chloe Armstong drilled a lead-off home run over the fence in center to drop McKendree's lead to 3-1. Taylor Hoelscher would follow with a double, but Quaethem would retire the next three Griffons to seal her fourth win of the season and move to 4-3 on the year.
 
Both teams finished with four hits in the game as four different Bearcats had a hit. Armstrong had two of MWSU's four hits.
 
Quaethem would toss a complete-game four-hitter as she allowed one run, while walking one and striking out seven. Quaethem has now recorded 41 strikeouts and five walks in 40 innings on the season.
 
Rader (1-3) took the loss to MWSU as she tossed five-plus innings and allowed four hits and three runs, while walking two and striking out six.
 
Meanwhile, in the second game against the Griffons, the Bearcats finished with 12 hits and scored at least two runs in four of the seven innings, including tallying three runs each in the first two innings.
 
The game was sloppy as the teams combined for seven errors as McKendree finished with four errors, while the Griffons committed three errors.
 
McKendree jumped in front 3-0 in the top of the first inning as graduate student Paige Hayden (Independence, Mo./Fort Osage) brought home a run with her RBI single to center, while junior third baseman Kelsey Sachs (Troy, Mo./Troy Buchanan) drove home two runs on a 2-run single up the middle.
 
MWSU would come right back and score three runs in the bottom of the first to tie the game at 3-all. Two of the three runs were earned against freshman pitcher Sydney Bires (Carlinville, Ill./Gillespie).
 
The Bearcats added three more runs in the top of second on an RBI single by Hayden and a 2-run single by Davis to give the Bearcats a 6-3 lead.
 
MWSU would get one of those runs back in the bottom of the third to pull within 6-4 and would add another run in the bottom of the fourth thanks to three hits, including an RBI single by Armstrong.
 
The Bearcats pushed its lead 9-3 in the top of the fifth as junior catcher Morgan Andrews (Creal Springs, Ill./Marion) brought home the first two runs on an RBI double up the middle and then Stansbury followed with an RBI single off Kelly Uthe, who was the second pitcher of the game for the Griffons.
 
MWSU would score runs in the bottom of the sixth to pull within 9-7.
 
McKendree, though, would add two more to its tally in the top of the seventh inning thanks to RBI singles by Andrews and Stansbury to extend its lead to 11-7.
 
The Griffons would score two more runs in the bottom of the seventh to pull within 11-9, before Bires would retire the next Griffon hitters to seal the win and help improve her record to 1-1 on the season.
 
Andrews paced the Bearcats with a 3-for-4 effort at the plate with 2 runs scored and 2 RBI, while Stansbury also had three hits and added two runs and 2 RBI and Hayden tallied two hits and scored two runs and had 2 RBI.
 
For the game, the top four hitters (Lawrence, Anderson, Stansbury and Hayden) in the Bearcats line-up went a combined 9-for-17 at the plate with six runs scored and 7 RBI.
 
Armstrong had three hits for the Griffons, while Emma Hoffart added two hits and Syndi Hawkins scored two runs for Missouri Western.
 
Bries (1-1) tossed a complete game as he allowed nine hits and nine runs (three earned), while walking two and striking out two.
 
Natalie Kissinger (4-5) took the loss in the circle for the Griffons as she tossed three innings and allowed five hits and five runs (two earned), while walking two and striking out two.
 
The Bearcats will open Great Lakes Valley Conference play next Friday, March 11 as they travel to Romeoville, Ill., for a doubleheader against Lewis University at 12 and 2 p.m. respectively.