RSU Sports
Tim Hanson, Sports Information Director
HAYS, Kan. – The Rogers State softball team closed out the weekend with a 9-3 win over Upper Iowa in windy conditions with wind gusts of 40-50 mph on Sunday at Fort Hays State’s Tiger Stadium. RSU went 3-0 in Hays and won its seventh straight game this season to move to 11-4 overall.
The Hillcats build a 4-1 edge and, after UIU cut the deficit to one at 4-3, used a five-run seventh inning to pull away for the 9-3 win.
With Katy Taylor at third base, Katelyn Gamble put down a nicely placed bunt to allow Taylor to speed home from third to increase the edge to 5-3 for the first run in the seventh. Tailee Reding plated one run with a single up the middle to make it 6-3. Gamble scored on a fielder’s choice, and Reding came home on a groundout to push the Cats to an 8-3 margin. Rylie DeLozier added the final RSU run with a single to left to score Brooke Tyler.
RSU tallied the first run of the game in the first inning on a sac fly from Danelle Day. After the Peacocks tied it at 1-1 in the second, Allie McFetridge knocked out a homer, her second this weekend, to left to give the Cats the lead again at 2-1. Merissa Smith hit a two-run home run in the fifth to extend the RSU advantage to 4-1.
The Peacocks used a home run of their own in the fifth and a sac fly in the sixth to pull to within one at 4-3 before the Cats poured on the runs in the seventh inning.
Senior Alex Brake earned her second win of the weekend, pitching 4.0 innings in relief. The Joplin, Mo. product allowed only three hits and one earned run with six strikeouts. Reding started in the circle and went 2.0 innings and allowed only three hits and one run with two strikeouts. Andrea Morales came in for the final inning and struck out one with one hit allowed.
Taylor finished 2-for-4 at the plate with one run scored. McFetridge was 1-for-4 with two RBI, ending a six-game stretch with two hits. She almost hit a second home run today, but her fly ball was just foul down the left field line in the windy conditions.
The Cats went 7-0 this week with home wins over Northwestern Oklahoma State (twice), Fort Hays State and Oklahoma Baptist before the three wins in Hays over Nebraska Kearney, Washburn and Upper Iowa today. Today’s second game was canceled due to the winds in Hays.
The Hillcats start Heartland Conference play this Friday (Feb. 23) at St. Mary’s with a doubleheader at 3 p.m. in San Antonio, Texas. RSU goes to St. Edward’s on Saturday (Feb. 24) for a twinbill at 12 p.m. in Austin, Texas.