Rio Grande Sports Information
WEST PORTSMOUTH, Ohio - The University of Rio Grande's hopes of claiming a River States Conference East Division softball title died with a gut-wrenching extra-inning loss to rival Shawnee State.
But rather than hanging their collective heads, the RedStorm elected to close their regular season schedule with a rebound effort instead.
Head coach Chris Hammond's club started strong and finished stronger in a 9-2 game two triumph over the host Bears, Saturday afternoon, in RSC play at Doc Singleton Park.
Shawnee State rallied to win the front end of the twin bill, 4-3 in 10 innings.
Rio Grande moved to 29-17 overall and 21-11 in conference action as a result of the split.
The Bears completed regular season play at 33-9 overall and 23-9 in the RSC.
After the heartbreaking loss in the opener, Rio Grande started the nightcap with a pair of first inning runs and then added single markers in the third, fifth and sixth innings for a 5-0 lead.
SSU tried to make things interesting with a pair of runs in the home sixth, but the RedStorm put the victory on ice by tacking on four more markers in the seventh.
Junior Peyton Young (Mt. Orab, OH) and sophomore Gabby Adams (Grove City, OH) had RBI doubles in the first, while junior Madison Ogden (Williamsburg, OH) had a run-scoring hit in the third, Adams had another RBI double in the fifth and sophomore Kayla Sedgwick (Richwood, OH) plated the sixth inning run with an RBI single.
Senior Lexi Carnahan (Felicity, OH) clubbed a two-run home run to highlight Rio's four-run seventh, while junior Megan Bazler (Portsmouth, OH) had a run-scoring double and senior Caitlyn Brisker (Oak Hill, OH) tacked on an RBI single.
Adams finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI in the win, while Brisker also had three hits - including a double - and a run batted in.
Sedgwick, Ogden and Bazler all had two hits and an RBI. Both of Bazler's hits were doubles.
The offensive explosion backed a strong pitching effort from senior Sydney Campolo (New Lexington, OH), who allowed just five hits and two runs - one earned - in a complete game effort. She also walked three and struck out three.
Amariah Hoerner started and went the distance in the loss for SSU.
Cassie Berry went 2-for-4 and Bianca Belo-Diaz had a two-run single for the Bears.
In game one, Shawnee State took a 2-0 fourth inning lead thanks to a run-scoring double by Sierra Dunnagan and a fielder's choice grounder by Mackenzie Hale, but Rio Grande started a methodical comeback in the sixth inning.
Ogden hit a solo homer in the sixth, Brisker delivered a dramatic game-tying RBI single in the seventh and Adams clubbed an eighth inning home run to give the RedStorm a 3-2 advantage.
Shawnee State stayed alive in the bottom of the inning thanks to consecutive two-out hits by Berry and Dunnagan and a subseuqent wild pitch by Ogden, which allowed Berry to cross with the tying run.
In the bottom of the 10th, Brittani Wolfenbarker began the frame with a single, was bunted into scoring position and scored the game-winner on a two-out hit by Berry.
Ogden took the loss, allowing 10 hits and the four runs. She did not issue a walk and struck out 14.
Ogden also went 2-for-4 at the plate, while Sedgwick added a double in the loss.
Berry went the distance in the circle for SSU, allowing six hits and three runs. She walked four and struck out five.
Berry finished 4-for-5 at the plate, while Dunnagan was 2-for-4 with a double.
Rio Grande will enter next week's RSC Tournament as the No. 2 seed out the East Division and will face West Division No. 3 seed Oakland City University in the opening round of the double-elimination event on Thursday, May 2, at noon, at Little Creek Park in South Charleston, W.Va.
