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Box Score 2 TYLER, Texas – It took two wins in elimination games but the #12 East Texas Baptist University softball team has kept their hopes alive to repeat as the American Southwest Conference champions. In the first game of the day, ETBU held off the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, 6-4, and then routed Louisiana College, 7-2, in the final game of the day. With the win, they will play another elimination game against #2 University of Texas Tyler at 12 p.m. as the winner will advance to the championship game.
ETBU 6, UMHB 4
ETBU jumped out to a 4-0 lead with three runs in the second and one in the third as ETBU was cruising. UMHB came in the third, fourth, and fifth inning pushing ETBU to their limits. In the fifth, it was 6-3 when McKayla Hendrix came in relief for Rocki Tello and went 3.2 innings for the save. She gave up one earned run in that time shutting down UMHB. Tello received the win with 3.1 innings pitched and five hits. Lacey Lindsey was 2-of-4 while Shelby Irbeck also had two hits for two RBI. Kaitlyn Hollingshead led the team with three RBI on two hits including a double. Lindsey Vasquez also added a RBI.
Irlbeck put ETBU on the board in the second inning with a double down the left field line as Gabby Gonzales scored. Hollingshead then added a double as both Ilrbeck and Morgan Arst scored for a 3-0 lead. In the third inning, Irlbeck had a sacrifice fly as Madison Prince touched home for the 4-0 lead. UMHB added a run in the third but the Vasquez earned her RBI with a single up the middle making it 5-1. After UMHB scored a run in the fourth inning Hollingshead picked up her third RBI with a single to left field for a 6-2 lead in the fifth. UMHB threatened in the fourth inning but Hendrix came in and only allowed one run as the final was 6-4.
ETBU 7, LC 2
Linzie Lewis tied the single season record for hits with 68 going 4-of-4 in the game and scoring twice. She had two singles, a double, and a triple helping ETBU route LC, 7-2. Lindsey was 2-of-4 with three RBI as she swatted her 54th career home run for two RBI and earned another RBI on a single. Hollingshead made it four RBI on the day with one on a sacrifice fly.
ETBU scored one in the first on a Lindsey single to left field as Lewis came in. In the second inning, Hollingshead brought in Brea Robinson on a sacrifice fly to left field. Two runs by LC in the third inning tied the game up. At that point, with two outs, Jordan Anderson was relieved and Hendrix came in to go 3.1 innings for the win. She only allowed two hits and no runs shutting down LC for her third win of the year.
It was the fifth inning where ETBU opened up the offense scoring five runs with no outs. Vasquez stole third base and then came home on a throwing error for the 3-2 lead. Jayme Perez followed with a single up the middle, two batters later, as Lewis came in for a 4-2 advantage. Following Perez, Lindsey hit shot to the deepest part in the park, dead center field, for a two-run home run and a 6-2 lead. Prince was the final run to come in on a throwing error for the 7-2 lead. LC didn't threaten at all in the sixth and seventh as ETBU advanced on.
ETBU will now face a familiar team in Texas Tyler at 12:00 p.m. in an elimination game. UTT fell to Texas Dallas, 7-6, on a walkoff single as the Comets advanced to the championship game.
