Pool F Recap: Day Three (Saturday)
GULF SHORES, Ala. - William Carey (Miss.) rallied past Houston-Victoria (Texas) 3-2 in nine innings in a winner-take-all game to advance out of Pool F into the double elimination bracket, while Indiana Wesleyan defeated Central Methodist (Mo.) in other Pool F action. The Lady Crusaders will face Pool C's winner Monday, May 21 at 10 a.m. CDT to open bracket play.
Trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the sixth, the Lady Crusaders turned a foul pop out to the shortstop into a tying run. After Hannah Cook-Kelley drew the throw with a bluff at second, Kelsey Jo Smith tagged and raced home, scoring on a bang-bang play.
Anna Lauren Fontenot led off the ninth with a single and then pinch runner Kayla Byrd moved to second on a sac bunt, before scoring on Kaitlyn Perry's walk-off RBI-double to left-center. Alyssa Boutwell got the win with five innings of four-hit, one-run relief, while Emily Bergstrom took the loss after giving up three runs on eight hits in 8.1 innings of work.
Smith and Cook-Kelley each finished with two hits for William Carey, while Ariel Gomez and Ashley Winegeart each collected three hits for the Jaguars.
Indiana Wesleyan and Central Methodist traded three-run seventh innings, with the Wildcats of Indiana Wesleyan coming out on top 5-4 despite 15 hits from the Eagles. Tamara Davis finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored for Indiana Wesleyan, while Rebecca Lipsey finished with a home run and three RBI and Kelsey Johnley finished 2-for-3 for the Eagles.
Emily Sell produced the game-winning run in the top of the seventh with a two-out RBI-single to cap the three-run inning, and then Central Methodist made its rally in the home half of the frame. Following Lipsey's three-run bomb and a pair of strikeouts, three singles loaded the bases for the Eagles, but winning pitcher Abbie Foreman induced a groundout to pick up her 37th win of the year.