The Knox College softball team earned a split on Saturday afternoon, topping Lawrence 2-1 in the first game before falling 8-6 in the second matchup.
The Prairie Fire (7-19 overall, 2-6 in Midwest Conference) are next in action on Sunday, hosting Harris-Stowe for two games, the first starting at 1 p.m.
In the opener, Janet Lentini dominated, tossing a complete game and allowing one run on four hits with four strikeouts.
Lawrence scored in the third. In the fourth, they loaded the bases with no outs, but Taylor Goudschaal made a key snag for the first out. Lentini fielded a grounder to Kylie Thomson for out two, then ended the threat with a strikeout. Momentum shifted, and Knox's offense then came alive. Lauren O'Neill led off the fifth with a double. Maddie Hicks reached on a bunt, putting two on with no outs.Â
In the bottom of the fourth, Kara Burwell drove home O'Neill with a single to center. Then, with two out in the inning, Thomson beat the throw to first, allowing Hicks to score.
Lentini shut the door from there. Hicks led with three hits and a run.Â
In the second game, Knox trailed 3-0 after three innings, but in the bottom of the fourth, the Prairie Fire bats came to life, scoring six runs.Â
Hicks opened the inning with a single, which was followed by a hit from O'Neill. Cheyanne Merkel then reached on an infield single, loading the bases with no one out. Hicks scored Knox's first run on an error, then Burwell cut the deficit to one with a two-run single. A Lawrence error allowed the Prairie Fire to take the lead as two runs scored on a ball hit by Thomson. Knox was not done in the inning, though, as Chelsea McKee capped the rally with a two-run single.Â
Knox couldn't add on. Lawrence scored two in the fifth and three in the sixth.Â
Hicks and Merkel each had two hits for Knox, while Thomson and McKee both had a pair of RBI.
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