Quincy, Ill. - The Quincy University softball team started their weekend a day delayed after some rain late in the week. Quincy faced a strong Drury University team at home on Sunday afternoon (Apr. 6). Errors put the Hawks under in game one, losing 5-1, and a solo shot to left center from the Panthers gave the Hawks a late deficit in the 8-7 defeat.
Game One
The Hawks defense locked in through the early innings with a few key put outs in the infield. With runners in scoring position,
Mykah Hurley sent the ball batted in toward home for a pick-off attempt, and
Kinsey Biggerstaff threw it back up the line to
Kenzie Moss. Moss sent it back down to
Kaelyn Conger to get the tag on Panthers' lead-off Sophia Luetticke to save the Hawks from a deficit in the first inning. Drury had a similar play against the Hawks in the bottom of the inning. Biggerstaff took a large round of second base and slipped on the wet dirt, went to third base and headed to home on an errant throw from the Panthers. Biggerstaff was tagged out for the second out of the inning.
The Panthers got one on the board in the second on an error, and Quincy tried to produce one in the bottom of the inning with Hurley beating out a throw on her bunt attempt.
Jessie Martin hit a sacrifice bunt to move Hurley around, but a ball batted into the first baseman ended the inning early for the Hawks.
Quincy stayed quiet through the fourth inning while the Panthers got another runner around in the top of the third. The Panthers then scored a two-run single, followed by another run on the next at bat. The shutout on the 5-0 lead was spoiled by Martin, who started the bottom of the inning with a walk.
Allison Kaiser found a hole in center field to advance Martin while
Lindsey Fischer's hit to right brought Martin to home plate. The Hawks could not find an opportunity to bring the bats around in the remaining innings, and kept the game at a 5-1 deficit.
Game Two
The bats were moving for both teams in game two with Drury putting up four unanswered runs in the first inning. The Panthers added another run in the second on a fielder's choice. Quincy got on the board off a deep double from Kaiser, bringing in a walked Hurley in the process. The Hawks took a 7-1 deficit on seven hits in the top of the third inning but did not allow the Panthers an edge in the middle of the game.
Moss turned the Hawks around, claiming four RBIs in the next two innings. A single from the shortstop brought in Fischer in the third inning before she sent one to the wall in a bases-clearing double to cut the Hawks' deficit to one run. Quincy tallied their seventh run, a tying run, late in the bottom of the fifth inning with an extra-base single from Fischer, Kaiser running in to tap on home plate.
Quincy's momentum was halted by a solo home run over the left field wall from the Panthers. Good fielding from the Panthers also kept Quincy to just the seven runs and preserved their sweep of the day.
Emma Stieferman started game two and got through the first three innings before
Kaidence Dumas came in for relief. Dumas struck two batters out and kept the Panthers to just the solo shot over left field.
Moss, Kaiser, and Fischer all had three hits on the day, though Moss produced the most runs for the Hawks with 4 RBI.
The Hawks will return tomorrow for a doubleheader against Missouri S&T at 12 and 2 p.m. to conclude their rain delayed home weekend. With a five-game win streak over the Miners, the Hawks look to continue that momentum and get back into the win column.
