MANSFIELD, Texas — Griffon Softball (2–0) opened its 50th season in strong fashion, sweeping Central Region foe Harding (1–1), 10–1, and in-state opponent Drury (0–2), 4–2, on opening day and day one of the Lone Star D2 College Classic at the Fields at Station 63.
Game 1: MoWest 10, Harding 1
The Griffons opened the scoring in the second inning when
Ashlyn Finarty launched a solo home run to deep left field. Harding briefly answered in the bottom half of the inning, scoring on a sacrifice bunt and a throwing error to even the game at 1–1.
MWSU regained control in the third inning.
Myah Dwyer sparked the rally by stealing second base allowing
Kalee Higdon to steal home plate to give the Griffons the lead. Later in the inning,
Sydney Young crushed a two-run homer to extend the advantage, and
Sarah Swallow added a sacrifice fly to push the margin to 5–1.
The Griffons continued to add on in the fifth inning.
Rachel Cain drew a bases-loaded walk to drive in a run, followed by a sacrifice fly from Higdon to make it 7–1.
MoWest put the game out of reach in the sixth inning when
Ayva McComas delivered a three-run home run to left field, scoring Dwyer and Young and capping the scoring at 10–1.
In the circle,
Ashlyn Finarty earned the win, improving to 1–0 on the season. She tossed a complete game, allowing just three hits and one unearned run over six innings while walking one and striking out two. Finarty faced 24 batters and needed 82 pitches to secure the victory.
Game 2: MoWest 4, Drury 2
MoWest jumped out in front right away, as
Kalee Higdon launched a solo shot in the opening inning before
Rachel Cain drove in another run with a base hit in the second to put the Griffons ahead 2–0 against Drury.
The Panthers responded in the third when Gabrielle Bax sparked the inning with a double and later came home on a Kenna Trower single, trimming the deficit to one. Both lineups were kept in check in the fourth, but Drury evened things up in the fifth to make it 2–2.
MWSU delivered the decisive blow in the sixth. Higdon came through again, ripping a two-run single to bring home
Brooklynn Clark and
Sienna Reed. The Griffon defense and pitching took care of the rest, shutting down Drury over the final two innings to secure the 4–2 victory.
The Griffon pitching staff allowed six hits and two runs over seven innings.
Torie Sandoval worked 4.1 innings with two strikeouts, while
Harley Pruetting earned the win by throwing 2.2 scoreless, hitless innings in relief.
What's Next
Griffon Softball continues the Lone Star D2 Classic with a single game tomorrow, taking on Texas Woman's at 2 p.m. on Saturday from the Fields at Station 63 in Mansfield, Texas.
