FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State picked up its second sweep in MIAA play this season by defeating Central Missouri twice on Saturday at Fleharty Family Field. The Tigers won by scores of 3-2 and 2-1 to move to 20-20 overall, 6-12 in the MIAA. Central Missouri dropped to 21-22 overall, 10-12 in the MIAA.
Game 1: Fort Hays State 3, Central Missouri 2
The Jennies took the early lead in the first contest with a two-out, two-RBI single by Abby Allnutt in the top of the first. But that was all the scoring the Jennies would do against Savannah Egger, who buckled down and held UCM scoreless the remainder of the game.
After great scoring opportunities in the first three innings, the Tigers finally broke through with a pair of runs in the fourth. A throwing error to open the inning helped start a Tiger rally. Sarah Tiffany and Alondra Dominguez each followed with singles as Dominguez notched an RBI on her hit. With one out, Regan Curry delivered an RBI single to tie the game at 2-2.
A dropped pop up by UCM in the fifth helped the Tigers to their go-ahead run. A Tiffany single put two on for the Tigers. UCM tried to turn a ground-ball double play on the next play, but the shortstop threw wide of the first base bag, allowing Loren Beggs to wheel around to score. UCM committed a total of five errors in the game as FHSU took advantage of the miscues.
Egger made the Tiger lead hold up as she worked around a base runner in both the sixth and seventh innings for her second complete-game win of the weekend. She moved to 11-9 on the season with the win, allowing four hits and two walks with six strikeouts.
Paige Petefish pitched the first four innings for UCM and had three strikeouts. Both of her runs allowed were unearned. Andi Siebeneck (2-3) took the loss in relief for the Jennies with one strikeout and her run allowed was also unearned.
Game 2: Fort Hays State 2, Central Missouri 1
Fort Hays State did all of its scoring damage in the first inning of the second contest, and it was enough for starter Morgan Schmidt who also recorded her second complete game of the weekend.
Peyton Shepard singled and moved up to second on a wild pitch. Sarah Tiffany drove her in from second with a base hit to center field. Tiffany moved up on the throw to home plate and then traded spots with Loren Beggs, who drove in Tiffany with an RBI single and moved up on the throw to the plate.
A double and an RBI single by Jadyn Sheffield in the second inning accounted for half of UCM's hits in the game. Schmidt eventually retired the final seven batters of the game to pick up her fifth win of the season. She allowed just four hits and walked two, while fanning seven batters for the second-straight day.
Fort Hays State did all of its hit damage in the first inning of the game as a fielding error and a fielder's choice in the fifth yielded FHSU's only baserunners after the first inning. Brooke Weimer took the tough-luck loss for UCM, moving to 8-10 on the season.
UP NEXT
Fort Hays State will play a non-conference doubleheader at Northwestern Oklahoma State on Tuesday before jumping back into MIAA action at home next weekend against Central Oklahoma and Newman.