Bradley softball (18-21, 7-7 MVC) hosted conference rivals Valparaiso (17-18, 6-8 MVC) over the weekend and SIU Edwardsville (20-16, 10-4 Ohio Valley Conference) on Tuesday. The team produced a few mixed performances, which led to them winning half of their games.
Beacons shine bright during doubleheader
Bradley was scheduled to start the series on Friday, but heavy rain postponed it. The game was moved to Saturday, making it a doubleheader.
The Beacons started the first game’s scoring by advancing runners on a passed ball, helping them take a 1-0 lead. Unfortunately for the Braves, despite multiple efforts to tie it up, they left four runners on base after the second, third and seventh innings.
Bradley’s only hit came in the form of a double by junior third baseman Ashley Breeding in the second. Besides that, the offense dried up after the first few innings, leading the Beacons to a 1-0 victory in the first matchup.
However, caught fire in the second game, with 12 runs scored by both teams. Throughout the first inning and a half, Valparaiso scored on a sacrifice lineout, a two-RBI single, a one-RBI single and a bases-loaded walk.
The Braves responded by hitting two home runs from freshman first baseman Olivia Turner and senior shortstop Addie Welsh to cut the lead down to two.
Both teams’ offenses stayed dormant until the fifth inning, when Valparaiso hit another RBI single. An inning and a half later, junior pitcher Hannah Organ grounded out to second base, which helped freshman second baseman Morgan Schlosser cross the plate.
Afterward, the Beacons scored two runs, one from a fielder’s choice and the other from an RBI single. The Braves couldn’t find a run in the bottom of the seventh, settling the win for the Beacons, 8-4.
Bradley avoids a sweep
Bradley returned to the field on Sunday, hoping to earn at least one victory against Valparaiso, and the Braves succeeded.
Bradley finally answered first with an RBI double from junior right fielder Kierston McCoy, taking a 1-0 lead with them into the end of the third. The Beacons tied things up through a fielding error in the top of the fourth and continued their attack in the next inning, with another throwing error and an RBI single adding to the Bradley deficit.
The Braves created a Beacon mistake of their own on a single down the left field line from senior designated player Abbott Badgley and an RBI single from Turner, thus increasing the score to 4-3 in favor of Bradley. The offense didn’t make another appearance after that, which meant the Braves bested their conference foes.
Massive third inning propels Bradley to victory
Two days later, the Braves faced an SIU Edwardsville team that was 20-15 coming into this matchup. After two innings where Bradley scored four runs each, they added one more loss to that record.
The Cougars started the game hot, as two runners came across on a throwing error. Afterward, no runs were scored until the bottom of the third, when Bradley exploded offensively.
Breeding hit a triple into left, McCoy flew out to left, sending Breeding home. Turner reached first on another throwing error, which helped junior infielder Austin Comstock score, and Organ hit an RBI single up the middle. Comstock continued her run of form next inning, hitting a sacrifice fly to center, helping Addie Welsh advance to home.
Down 5-2, SIUE needed a miracle in the top of the fifth, and after a two-RBI double down the right field line, the Cougars seemed to be back in it.
However, that sudden burst was not enough, as the Braves scored four more runs during the next half-inning. Welsh hit an RBI single to left, Breeding did the same and McCoy rocketed a two-RBI triple into the outfield. Two more innings went by, and SIUE could not do a thing, helping Bradley get a much-needed win, 9-4.
The Braves will start a three-game series in Carbondale Friday at 5 p.m., taking on Southern Illinois, another conference rival.
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