BUCKHANNON, W.Va. — West Virginia Wesleyan dropped both games of Friday's Mountain East Conference softball doubleheader against Glenville State University at Culpepper Field.
Game One: Glenville State 9, West Virginia Wesleyan 0 — 5 innings
Glenville State used a strong pitching performance from Kylie Burdic and steady run production in the middle innings to take the opener, 9-0.
Burdic held Wesleyan to one hit across five innings, striking out three and issuing no walks. The Bobcats' lone hit came from
Reagan Winn, who singled in the second inning. Wesleyan also generated early movement on the bases when
Jaelyn Riley reached on an error in the first and stole second, but the Bobcats were unable to bring her home.
The Pioneers broke through in the second inning. Zailees Seda opened the frame with a single and was replaced by pinch runner Addie Hicks, who stole second. AndiJo Howard followed with an RBI double to score Hicks, and Glenville State added another run later in the inning when Shelby McDaniels reached on a fielder's choice as Howard scored on a Wesleyan error.
Glenville State added three more runs in the fourth. After McDaniels and Lillian Burns reached, Emily Nolan walked to load the bases. Hannah Howe drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, and Seda followed with a two-run single to extend the lead to 5-0.
The Pioneers put the game out of reach with a four-run fifth. Emma McLean singled and stole both second and third before McDaniels drove her in with a base hit. Howe later delivered a two-run single, and Seda added a sacrifice fly to make it 9-0.
For Wesleyan,
Avery Orille started in the circle and took the loss, allowing two runs, one earned, over 1.1 innings.
Mackenzie O'Brien worked 2.2 innings in relief, while
Jansen Kimble pitched the final inning for the Bobcats.
Glenville State finished with eight hits, led by Howard, who went 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Seda added two hits and three RBIs, while Howe drove in three runs.
Game Two: Glenville State 7, West Virginia Wesleyan 4
Wesleyan's offense came alive in the second game, but Glenville State answered each Bobcat push and held on for a 7-4 win.
Glenville State struck first in the opening inning when Lillian Burns doubled and later scored on an RBI groundout by Emily Nolan. Wesleyan answered immediately in the bottom half.
Jaelyn Riley walked, stole second, and scored on an RBI single from
Josi Fix, tying the game at 1-1.
The Pioneers moved back in front in the second inning. Emma McLean doubled and scored on a single by Shelby McDaniels, and Burns followed with an RBI single to give Glenville State a 3-1 lead.
Wesleyan cut the deficit to one in the third without a hit. Riley reached on an error, stole second and third, and came home on an RBI groundout by
Lynzee Hague, making it 3-2.
Glenville State extended the lead in the fifth when McLean delivered a two-run double, scoring AndiJo Howard and Cydney Drousias for a 5-2 advantage. The Bobcats responded again in the bottom half. Riley walked, stole second and third, and scored on Hague's RBI single. Hague then stole second and came around on an RBI single by
Madison Austra, pulling Wesleyan within 5-4.
The Pioneers answered in the sixth. Burns singled to begin the inning, and Hannah Howe followed with a two-run home run to push Glenville State's lead to 7-4.
Wesleyan brought the tying run no closer in the final two innings. Megan Stump entered in relief for Glenville State in the sixth and held the Bobcats scoreless over the final two frames, allowing one hit.
Hague led Wesleyan at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs and two stolen bases. Riley scored three of the Bobcats' four runs and stole five bases, while Fix and Austra each added an RBI.
Kali Vance also had a strong offensive game, going 2-for-3.
In the circle,
Morgan Greene took the loss after working 5.1 innings and allowing seven runs on 12 hits.
Avery Orille was effective in relief, tossing 1.2 scoreless innings with one strikeout and no hits allowed.
Glenville State totaled 12 hits in game two. Burns went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and an RBI, while Howe finished 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs. McLean added two doubles and two RBIs.
The Bobcats end their season with a 17-33 record and 9-21 in the conference.
