FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State picked up a much-needed game two win against Newman University on Saturday after seeing its lead in game one slip away at Fleharty Family Field. FHSU led game one 5-0 but saw Newman rally for eight runs in the fifth to get past and take game one 8-6. The Tigers bounced back for a 5-1 win in game two, moving to 24-22 overall and 8-14 in the MIAA. Newman moved to 20-30 overall, 6-16 in the MIAA.
Game 1: Newman 8, Fort Hays State 6
Fort Hays State built a strong 5-0 lead through three innings, but saw Newman break through with a humongous two-out rally in the fifth, turning the tables drastically in the first contest of the day. The Tigers scored one in the sixth, but could not rally back as the Jets stole game one.
A Loren Beggs double and Lilliana Ramirez-Johnson single in the second inning set up an RBI single by Audrey Gillespie and RBI single by Madison Pierce to put the Tigers up 2-0. In the third, FHSU put together a two-out rally as Sarah Tiffany singled, Ramirez-Johnson walked, and Gillespie tripled down the right field line to drive in two more. Regan Curry capped the rally with an RBI single up the middle to make it 5-0 Tigers.
Morgan Schmidt threw three shutout innings to open the game and handed the ball to Emma Montoya in the fourth where she escaped a bases-loaded jam in the, but could not escape an offensive surge by the Jets in the fifth. Newman picked up its first run on a one-out RBI double and then loaded the bases. The next seven runs for the Jets came on six straight hits with two outs. A 2-RBI double made it 5-3, chasing Montoya from the game. Schmidt returned in the circle, but an RBI single and then a 2-RBI triple pushed the Jets in front 6-5. Three more singles produced two more runs to cap the big rally. Bailey Carlson relieved to get the final out, but Newman produced nine of their 16 hits in the game in the fifth.
A Madison Pierce double and Carly Stuke single put the Tigers in business in the sixth, but they only pushed one run across on an Alondra Dominguez RBI groundout. FHSU got a baserunner with one out in the seventh, but Newman pitcher Jackie Gold retired the next two Tigers to finish her complete-game effort. Gold moved to 11-10 on the year with the result, while Schmidt took the loss and moved to 7-11 on the season.
Gold finished with seven strikeouts for the Jets, while Schmidt had three in 3.0 innings of work. Montoya (1 2/3 innings) and Carlson (2 1/3 innings) each had one strikeout. FHSU had 11 hits in the game, led by Tiffany, Gillespie, Curry and Pierce all with two.
Game 2: Fort Hays State 5, Newman 1
Savanah Egger shut the door on any hope of a Jet sweep by going the distance for her 19th complete game of the season in the second contest of the day. Egger held the Jets scoreless through five innings before yielding her only run allowed in the sixth. Meanwhile, the Tigers gave her a four-run lead with three in the fourth and one in the fifth before getting the run back given up in the bottom of the sixth.
FHSU blitzed Newman in the fourth with six-straight hits to open the inning. Loren Beggs singled and Alondra Dominguez doubled down the left field line to drive in Beggs. Audrey Gillespie then drove in Dominguez with a single. Lilliana Ramirez-Johnson and Regan Currty each singled to load the bases and then a Madison Pierce RBI single up the middle capped the rally.
The Tigers picked up a run in the fifth when a two-out single by Gillespie led to an RBI triple by Ramirez-Johnson. A Pierce double to open the sixth led to a sacrifice fly RBI by Carly Stuke to cap the scoring in the game.
Egger scattered five hits and struck out one for her 13th win of the season. Gillespie and Pierce each had 3-for-3 games at the plate, while Ramirez-Johnson had two hits. Seven of the nine Tigers in the lineup contributed to their 12 hits in the game.
UP NEXT
Fort Hays State heads on the road for its final two MIAA doubleheaders next week. The Tigers play at Northeastern State on Friday (April 26) and then Rogers State on Saturday (April 27). The Tigers will be looking to potentially clinch a spot in the MIAA Tournament, which will involve the top-10 teams in the conference this season.