ST. CHARLES, Mo. -- The Tennessee State softball team won games two and three on the road at Lindenwood on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Lions 8-7 in nine innings and 8-5 in the finale.
GAME 1 | Tennessee State 8, Lindenwood (MO) 7
The Tennessee State Tigers needed nine innings to finish the job, but earned the 8-7 extra-innings victory over the Lindenwood Lions Saturday.
Reina Castillo (11-3) started in the circle and picked up the win for Tennessee State (13-9, 4-3). The right-hander went nine innings, giving up seven runs, three earned, on 13 hits, allowing two walks and striking out two.
Offensively, the Tigers were paced by Onnika Spencer, who went 2-for-5 on the day with a triple, a home run and three RBI. Anayah Baker-Rowell put together a noteworthy performance as well, going 3-for-4 with a triple, a walk and an RBI. Alexis Woods also chipped in for Tennessee State, putting together one hit in five trips to the plate while adding two RBI.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Trailing 1-0, the Tigers first put runs on the board in the second inning. Tennessee State got an RBI single from Hailey Hunt, scoring Baker-Rowell from second base.
The Lions then scored one run to retake their advantage heading into the third inning, when the Tigers responded by getting back on the scoreboard themselves. Tennessee State scored three runs in the frame, buoyed by a two-run homer from Spencer, which brought the Tigers lead to 4-2.
Tennessee State's lead had disappeared once the fifth inning came around and turned into a 5-4 Lindenwood advantage, when the Tigers evened up the game at five.
The game stayed tied until the ninth inning, when Tennessee State got rolling again on offense. bringing the Tennessee State advantage to 8-5. Lindenwood put two runs on the scoreboard before the game was over, but the Tigers still held on for the 8-7 win.
GAME NOTES
» Baker-Rowell compiled three base hits in the game for Tennessee State.
» The Tigers power output was led by Spencer, who picked up two extra base hits in the ballgame.
» Tennessee State's highest scoring inning was the ninth, when it pushed three runs across.
» Four Tigers had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» Tennessee State pitchers faced 45 Lindenwood hitters in the game, allowing 10 ground balls and 15 fly balls while striking out two.
» Spencer led the Tigers at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a triple, a home run and three RBI.
» Lindenwood was led offensively by junior Jolie McMinn, who went 2-for-5 with a double and three RBI.
» Freshman Samanth Roulanaitis led the Lions pitching staff, throwing four innings of four-run ball.
GAME 2 | Tennessee State 8, Lindenwood 5
The Tennessee State Tigers broke through after a 5-5 tie in the fifth inning to beat the Lindenwood Lions 8-5 Saturday.
Kristian Holder (2-2) got the win out of the bullpen for Tennessee State (14-9, 5-3). The right-hander went four shutout innings, giving up two hits, two walks and striking out one.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Tigers were trailing 2-0 in the third inning when they first put runs on the board. Tennessee State's offense started clicking and put up four runs, including a three-run double off the bat of Jace Jackson.
The Tigers lost the lead they built in the third, but got back on the board in the fifth trailing 5-4. JaKeyla McDaniel came across to score the lone run of the inning for Tennessee State, which brought the score level at 5-5.
That 5-5 tie turned into a 7-5 Tennessee State lead in the sixth.
Tennessee State kept the Lions without a run before their offense got back in action the next inning. The Tigers scored once on an RBI single off the bat of Hailey Hunt, bringing the score to 8-5 in favor of Tennessee State. The score remained 8-5 for the rest of the game, as the Tigers held on for the win.
GAME NOTES
» Tennessee State's highest scoring inning was the third, when it pushed four runs across.
» Tennessee State pitchers faced 35 Lindenwood hitters in the game, allowing 10 ground balls and nine fly balls while striking out two.
» The Tigers drew five walks from Lindenwood pitching.
» Jackson led the Tigers at the plate, going 1-for-4 with a double and three RBI.
» Lindenwood was led offensively by junior Jolie McMinn, who went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
» Freshman Samanth Roulanaitis led the Lions pitching staff, throwing 1.1 innings of one-run ball.
