Lady Aggies fall to No. 14 Midwestern State
UPDATED STATISTICS»
LAWTON, Okla. (March 14) - A day after dealing 14th-ranked Midwestern State its first shutout loss of the season, the Cameron softball team felt the offensive wrath of the Mustangs.
MSU clubbed a school-record 18 hits in the first game, including a grand slam, en route to a doubleheader sweep of the Lady Aggies at Cameron field. Midwestern State won by scores of 10-5 and 4-2, dropping CU to 14-19 overall and 2-6 in Lone Star Conference North Division play.
Cameron out-hit MSU 8-7 in Tuesday's second contest, but it was a pair of big hits that fueled the two Mustang victories. Kelli Shaw's sixth-inning grand slam in Game 1 erased a 5-2 Cameron lead and Kristen Stonecipher broke a 2-2 tie with a two-run blast in the fifth inning of the nightcap.
Coach Brent Shaw's Lady Aggies got out to a 2-1 lead in the first inning of Tuesday's opener on a two-run homer down the left field line by Shelby Davis. Cameron then scored three times in the third, including two on an Allie Sanders single, to open up a 5-1 advantage.
But Amanda Hill opened the sixth inning with a homer to right-center for the Mustangs, opening the floodgates for a six-run inning. After a pair of singles and a hit-by-pitch, MSU's Shaw sent a Bethany Stefinsky offering over the right field fence to give the Mustangs a 7-5 lead.
Hill homered again to lead off the seventh and MSU plated two more in the inning to round out the scoring.
Brittany Willson (15-2) picked up the win for Midwestern State, despite allowing nine hits and five earned runs. Stefinsky, who entered in the fifth in relief of Cameron starter Jessica Hutton, was tagged with the loss after allowing six earned runs in just one and two-thirds innings.
Eight of MSU's nine hitters in the game recorded at least two hits apiece, with Shaw leading the way with three hits and four RBI. Stephanie Bour went 4-for-4 at the plate for the Lady Aggies.
Cameron had its eye on another upset win in Game 2, entering the fifth inning tied with MSU at 2-2. But after Stephanie Wardlaw's one-out single, Stonecipher ripped a pitch from Hutton down the left field line for the tie-breaking home run.
MSU took a 2-0 lead in the game on a bases-loaded walk by Jessica Rodriguez and an RBI groundout by Rachel Jackson in the top of the third. Cameron countered with an RBI double by Bour, who later scored on Stefinsky's single up the middle to knot the score in the bottom half of the inning.
Hutton worked her 14th complete game of the season, striking out two and scattering seven hits. MSU's Ashley Kuchenski went the distance, as well, giving up eight hits and striking out three while allowing just two earned runs.
Bour, Stefinsky and Sanders each had two hits in the game for the Lady Aggies. Stonecipher led the MSU hitting attack with a 2-for-3 effort and two RBI.
Next up for Cameron is a weekend trip to Emporia, Kan., for the Emporia State Invitational. The Lady Aggies begin action in the two-day festival on Saturday, taking on Fort Hays State at 11 a.m. Cameron will play five games in the event, including a Sunday showdown with top-ranked Emporia State at 2 p.m.
