ARKADELPHIA – Despite a strong late effort, the Ouachita softball team dropped game one to the first-place Oklahoma Baptist Bison by the score of 6-4 Friday night at Langston Field.
Both Ouachita and first-place Oklahoma Baptist traded singles in the first inning with no runs scored. But the Bison woke up in the second, scoring four runs to take the early lead. After a scoreless third, OKBU added another run in the fourth to push the score to 5-0. In the fifth, Ouachita forced the Bison down in order before deciding it was time to get on the board.
After back-to-back singles from
Jordyn Merrett and
Riley Gillis,
Emily Reed sent a long ball over the wall in left center to get the Tigers on the board and make the score 5-3. In the bottom of the sixth, Ouachita made it a one-run game when an RBI single from Gillis that got away from the Bison third baseman scored
Remington Adams from second to make it a 5-4 ballgame. OKBU added an insurance run in the top of the seventh. Ouachita got the tying run on base in the bottom of the seventh, but the rally fell short, and the Tigers fell by the final score of 6-4 and the Bison took a 1-0 lead in the series.
Ouachita tallied nine hits in the loss, with
Lauren Lester and Gillis each recording two to lead the team. Reed led the team in RBI with three followed by Gillis with one.
Karley Burrow got the start in the circle and gave up just one earned run in the loss.
Maggi Huddleston pitched 4.1 innings in relief and gave up one run and struck out one.
The Tigers will look to bounce back tomorrow in a doubleheader starting at noon to close out the series with Oklahoma Baptist.
