JACKSONVILLE – Ball State scored three early runs and held off the Jacksonville State softball team in a 4-2 non-conference game at University Field on Tuesday night.
The Gamecocks (3-9) mustered up nine hits but couldn't overcome the early deficit in dropping the midweek game with the Cardinals (5-5).
The Cardinals struck in the second, when they got a two-run homer from Kennedy Wynn. They would score a third run on a double steal that saw Amaia Daniel take second and Kayla Lissy steal home on the throw.
The Gamecocks got one back in the home half of the third.
Savannah Sudduth led the inning off with a double down the left field line, moved to third on a ground out by
Lauren Hunt and then scored on a single up the middle from
Karsen Mosley.
JSU cut into the lead even more in the fourth, when
Megan Fortner led things off with a single and moved over on a sacrifice bunt from
Nicole Rodriguez.
Alex Howard lined an RBI single down the left field line to cut BSU's lead to 3-2.
Ball State got that run back in the sixth, extending its lead to 4-2 on a two-out RBI single from Haley Dominique that plated Haley Wynn from second.
The Gamecocks mounted a threat in the seventh, putting the tying run on base after back-to-back singles from
Savannah Sudduth and
Lauren Hunt, but they couldn't push anything across.
Darcie Huber (1-2) earned the win in relief for the Cardinals after limiting JSU to a run on two hits and three strike outs in 3 and 2/3 innings. Deborah Jones pitched the final frame and earned her second save of the season.
Reagan Watkins (1-3) suffered the loss for JSU after allowing three runs on four hits in three innings of work.
Nicole Rodriguez tossed the final four frames, holding BSU to a run on two hits while striking out seven.
Seven different JSU players recorded at least one hit, with Sudduth and Hunt each with two.
The Gamecocks return home on Friday to start a three-game Ohio Valley Conference series against UT Martin. The series will begin at 4 pm on Friday and wrap up with a 1 pm doubleheader on Saturday. Admission is free for JSU students and fans ages 18 and under.
