FHSU Athletics
ALVA, Okla. – Fort Hays State improved to 22-20 overall on the season with a doubleheader sweep at Northwestern Oklahoma State on Tuesday. The Tigers won game one by run rule, 8-0 in six innings, before taking the second contest by a score of 9-5. Northwestern Oklahoma State moved to 17-27 overall on the season with the results.
Game 1: Fort Hays State 8, Northwestern Oklahoma State 0
Fort Hays State took an early lead in the first contest and never looked back as Savannah Egger recorded her fourth complete game shutout of the season. Egger scattered just four hits over 6.0 innings with one walk, while striking out six in a game that was shortened by an inning due to the run rule. Egger is now 12-9 on the season.
The Tigers went up 1-0 in the first inning when Sarah Tiffany had a two-out double and Loren Beggs followed with an RBI single to drive in Tiffany. The lead extended to 3-0 in the second inning with another two-out rally. Regan Curry and Madison Pierce singles and a fielding error by the Rangers loaded the bases and Peyton Shepard drove in a pair of runs with a single up the middle.
FHSU benefitted from another Ranger error to start their half of the fourth. Carly Stuke drew a two-out walk and then Shepard recorded her third RBI of the game with another single up the middle.
Audrey Gillespie delivered the big blow for the Tigers in the fifth with her second home run of the season, a three-run shot to left-center field. Beggs and Alondra Dominguez set up the opportunity with singles. Back-to-back singles by Shepard and Tiffany to open the sixth eventually set up an RBI groundout by Lilliana Ramirez-Johnson to push the lead to the run-rule threshold.
Shepard and Beggs each finished with three hits in the game. FHSU had 14 hits in the game overall
Game 2: Fort Hays State 9, Northwestern Oklahoma State 5
The lead changed hands three times in the second contest of the day as FHSU landed on the good end of a game that saw 14 runs scored. NWOSU took an initial lead in the first 1-0 before FHSU took the lead 2-1 in the third. NWOSU took the lead back at 3-2 with single runs in the third and fourth, but FHSU ultimately took the lead back with a pair of runs in the fifth and held on to the lead the rest of the way.
Morgan Schmidt threw the first 5.2 innings of the game for FHSU, recording eight strikeouts, though the Rangers were able to pick up 11 hits against her. All five of the runs she allowed in the game were earned. Emma Montoya took over with two outs in the sixth to slam the door on a threatening opportunity for the Rangers and went on to record her first save of the season with two strikeouts in 1 1/3 innings of work. She entered the game with two runners in scoring position and two outs in a 7-5 game.
The Rangers opened their half of the first with a double and triple to instantly take a 1-0 lead before the Tigers recorded an out. However, Schmidt worked her way out of the jam with three-straight strikeouts.
Madison Pierce drew a walk to open the third and eventually came in to score on a two-out RBI single by Carly Stuke. Peyton Shepard extended the inning with another single and then Sarah Tiffany pushed the Tigers into a 2-1 lead with another RBI single. NWOSU evened the score at 2-2 with a two-out RBI single in the third and then grabbed the lead back 3-2 with a two-out RBI single in the fourth.
Shepard opened the fifth with a bang when her flare to right-center field fell under a diving right fielder and rolled all the way to the wall as Shepard was off to the races for her second inside-the-park home run of the season. Two batters later, Loren Beggs put the Tigers in the lead 4-3 with her team-leading third homer of the season that flew over the wall in left field.
The Tigers loaded up the bases in the sixth on a Lilliana Ramirez-Johnson single, a Stuke double, and then a Shepard walk. Beggs upped the FHSU lead to 6-3 with a two-RBI single, then Alondra Dominguez followed with an RBI double to make it 7-3.
The Rangers put together yet another two-out rally in the sixth with a pair of RBI singles to make it 7-5, but Montoya took over for the Tigers and got a groundout to keep NWOSU from potentially tying the game or taking the lead. FHSU got both runs back in the top of the seventh when Pierce and Ramirez-Johnson singled to set up a two-RBI double by Stuke. Montoya got the first two outs of the seventh with strikeouts before getting a groundout to end the game.
Stuke, Shepard, and Ramirez-Johnson all had three hits in the game as FHSU recorded 16 as a team and finished the day with 30 hits between the two games. Beggs and Shepard each had four RBIs on the day between the two games to lead the Tigers.
UP NEXT
Fort Hays State now prepares to take on MIAA-leading Central Oklahoma on Friday in Hays at Fleharty Family Field. The doubleheader between the teams starts at 1 p.m.