CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – The Jacksonville State softball team kept rolling in Ohio Valley Conference play on Saturday, when they swept a twinbill at Southeast Missouri and took over sole possession of first place in the process.
With a 6-5 win in the opener and a 9-2 victory in the finale, the Gamecocks (22-14, 12-0 OVC) did their part on a day that saw them enter tied for first with Eastern Kentucky. The Colonels were swept by Eastern Illinois, giving JSU a two-game lead in the league standings.
JSU bounced back from a 3-0 deficit to the Redhawks (11-21, 5-7 OVC) in the first game and jumped on them in the second. The Gamecocks extended their win streak in OVC play to 16 games, tying the school record for consecutive OVC wins that was set during the 2010-11 seasons.
On Saturday, three-run home runs seemed to be the story. Of the 15 JSU runs plated in the doubleheader, 12 came on the team's four three-run blasts. Senior
Ella Denes hit one in each game, while sophomore
Whitney Gillespie and junior
Jamie McGuire each recorded one in the nightcap.
Denes, a native of Pisgah, Ala., went 6-for-8 with two doubles to go along with her two homers and six RBI. She scored four times.
In the first game, the Redhawks struck first with two runs in the second and another in the fourth to take a 3-0 lead.
The Gamecocks responded in the fifth in a big way, though. A leadoff single from
Anna Chisolm and an error that allowed
Emily Woodruff to reach set up Denes' first homer of the day and tied the game at 3-3.
Jordan Bullock then singled and advanced to third on two SEMO errors, setting up a
Stephanie Lewis sac fly that put JSU ahead for the first time.
Jax State got what turned out to be two very big insurance runs in the seventh, an inning that was set up by a Woodruff single and a Denes double, her second of the game. Grounders from Lewis and
Leila Chambers plated two runs and gave JSU a 6-3 lead.
The Redhawks threatened in the home half of the seventh, plating two and putting runners at second and third with two outs before Gillespie got out of the jam and secured the win.
Gillespie (7-1) earned her seventh-straight decision after going the distance and allowing five runs on seven hits. She walked six batters but battled to hang on for the win.
Madeline Krumley (5-8) suffered the loss after allowing six runs, four earned, on seven hits in six innings. She struck out seven and walked three.
In the second game, The Gamecocks wasted little time grabbing an early 3-0 lead. Gillespie followed singles from Denes and McGuire to hit her three-run blast, the first of three for JSU in the game.
SEMO scored two in the home half of the first, but Denes belted her second blast of the day and put a 6-2 JSU advantage on the scoreboard. That score held until the top of the seventh, when a McGuire three-run shot put the final 9-2 score up.
Junior
Taylor West (6-4) grabbed the win for JSU in the game, allowing the two runs on four hits in seven innings. She struck out seven and walked four in the win. Haley Thogmartin (6-8) took the loss for SEMO, surrendering six runs on five hits in 1 1/3 innings. Mackenzie Hoelting tossed the final 5 2/3 frames, allowing three runs on three hits.
The Gamecocks will travel to Martin, Tenn., where they will take on UT Martin in a Sunday doubleheader at 1 p.m. Both games will be carried live on the OVC Digital Network.
