ARKADELPHIA — The Ouachita softball team opened its home schedule Thursday, forcing extras in Game 1 before riding a decisive five-run inning to take full control of the nightcap.

The Tigers were held hitless through the first five innings of the opener before one clutch swing erased the deficit. After freshman Addison Davidson hit a bloop single into shallow right field to lead off the bottom of the seventh inning, redshirt-senior Remington Adams launched a towering 2-run home run over the left field wall to ignite the dugout and level the score.

The Bulldogs instantly retook a 4-2 lead in the eighth as junior Chloe Jones hit a two-run homer. Ouachita freshman Reagan McCoy hit a lead-off RBI double to switch places with the stationed ghost runner in the bottom of the eighth, but the Tigers were unable to manufacture the tying run as Union won the opener 4-3. McCoy led the Tigers going 2-for-3 at the plate with an RBI in the home opener defeat. 

Ouachita used a two-out rally to strike first in Game 2. Freshman Morgan Uher worked a full-count, then ripped a double down the left field line that barely stayed fair. McCoy stepped in the box and drove in Uher with an RBI single up the middle to give the Tigers a 1-0 edge. 

The Bulldogs took a 2-1 lead in the fourth, but the Tigers relied on small ball to level the score. After Adams led off with a single up the middle, sophomore Juice Caldwell reached on a fielding error, then junior Jordyn Merrett reached on a fielder's choice as Adams beat the tag at third base to load the bases. Sophomore Bella Roseberry dropped an RBI bunt while the Bulldogs were caught in no man's land as all runners reached safely. 

After trading blows through five innings, Ouachita capitalized on Union miscues during a decisive five-run sixth inning to take a commanding 7-2 lead. The rally started as Merrett reached on another infield error, then sophomore Rylee Gentzel dropped a sacrifice bunt to move Merrett into scoring position. Roseberry reached on a dribbler past the pitcher to move the go-ahead run at third base, then Merrett scored on a wild pitch. 

Once the lineup flipped over, Uher hit an RBI single through the left side to score Roseberry. Junior Emily Reed followed up and poked a clutch 3-run shot over the right field wall to send the dugout into celebration and complete the five-spot in the sixth. Starting pitcher graduate senior Hannah Hunter (1-1) finished the complete game in 99 pitches, striking out five batters, while allowing two earned runs. 

The doubleheader split gives the Tigers some momentum in the home opener series, highlighted by the emotional lift of a late game-tying homer in Game 1 and the offensive explosion that sealed the victory in Game 2. Ouachita (2-6) faces Union (2-8) in a rubber match to decide the series on Friday, with first pitch set for 2 p.m. at Langston Field.