Lady Tigers salvage final outing of four-game Texas trip

Returning to the diamond for the first time in 16 days, the Cowley College softball team faced some stiff competition in Weatherford, TX. The Lady Tigers lost a pair of one-run games on Sunday (2-1 and 8-7) before splitting two games on Monday.

"We saw some great competition over the two days," Cowley head coach Jenny Hoyt said. "We need to do a better job of executing with runners on base as we left a lot of runners on base in the losses."

In Sunday's opener, sophomore Brooke Mason (1-1) allowed two runs in the top of the first inning and that would be all Weatherford College would need in the 2-1 win. Mason allowed only four hits, while striking out eight and walking none. However, Cowley managed only one run despite having 12 baserunners.

Christian Wind led Cowley by going 1-for-3 with a run batted in. Brooklyn Auaujo's two-run triple in the bottom of the first inning accounted for all of Weatherford's scoring.

In Sunday's second game, Cowley led Seminole State 7-1 in the third inning before the Lady Trojans chipped away at the lead and eventually forced extra innings by scoring twice in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Tye North, who walked three times and scored Cowley's only run in its loss against Weatherford, hit her first home run of the season and Dezmen Duncan tripled and drove in three. However, after relieving Ashlynn Mercer in the sixth inning, Sydni Williams allowed the tying runs in the seventh and the winning run in the bottom of the eighth.

On Monday, Cowley would face Weatherford for a second time. Once again, the game was close as Cowley trailed only 3-2 before the Lady Coyotes scored three runs off Mercer (1-1) in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Cowley would scratch across a pair of runs in the top of the sixth inning but were unable to complete the comeback in the 6-4 loss.

Duncan had three hits in the loss, while Paige Hughes and Christian Wind had two hits apiece and each drove in a run.

Batting as the home team for the first time in the four games in Texas, Cowley scored three runs in the bottom of the third inning and three more in the fourth inning as they held on to defeat Navarro College 6-5.

Duncan tripled and drove in two, and Alivia Lange went 2-for-3 with two runs batted in.

Williams (1-1) started on the mound for Cowley and allowed six hits and three earned runs. Mason came in to pitch the final two innings and allowed just one unearned run as she earned her first save of the season.

"Brooke threw really well for us this weekend," Hoyt said. "She did a great job keeping hitters off balance as well getting ground balls for our defense."

Cowley (3-3) will return home to face Connors State in a doubleheader Friday at 1 and 3 p.m.

Score by inning

Game one                            R H E

Cowley          0 0 0 0 1 0 0 – 1 6 0

Weatherford 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 – 2 4 1

Game two                          R H E

Cowley    0 5 2 0 0 0 0 0 – 7 8 1

Seminole 0 1 1 0 3 0 2 1 – 8 12 0

Game three                         R H E

Cowley         0 0 1 0 1 2 0 – 4 8 0

Weatherford 0 0 3 0 3 0 x – 6 7 0

Game four                    R H E

Navarro 0 1 0 3 0 0 1 – 5 8 0

Cowley  0 0 3 3 0 0 x – 6 9 2