Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Western Kentucky
@HerdSB Takes Saturday Doubleheader over WKU
3/25/2017 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Game One Box Score (PDF)
Game Two Box Score (PDF)
Coach Stanton Post Game Video
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - The Marshall softball team tied a program record with its 14th straight win after taking the doubleheader over the WKU Hilltoppers, 5-3 and 10-4, at Dot Hicks Field Saturday afternoon. The Thundering Herd improves to 23-4 and 8-0 in Conference USA play as well as undefeated in the month of March. WKU falls to 18-17 and 3-5 in conference action.
Marshall set the program record for most consecutive wins in 2013 with a string of victories from March 13 at Radford to April 6 in Houston. During the streak, Marshall swept three Conference USA opponents in Southern Miss, UCF and Memphis.
Game One: Marshall 5, WKU 3
In front of a crowd of just over 700 on Lil Sis Day, Marshall displayed its heart and ability to fight back in both contests against the Hilltoppers.
In game one, WKU scored in the first inning, taking advantage of two Marshall errors to grab the early lead, 1-0. The Herd managed just one base runner in the first two innings against Haylee Towers for the Hilltoppers.
In the bottom of the third, Marshall stringed together four hits and jumped on four WKU errors to put up five runs. Senior Shaelynn Braxton drove in two of the Herd's runs as juniors Madi Marshall, Eloise Tribolet, Elicia D'Orazio and Taylor McCord along with senior Morgan Zerkle all scored in the inning for Marshall. The Herd took the lead 5-1 and never relinquished.
In the top of the fifth, WKU added two more runs to cut the lead down to two. However, senior Jordan Dixon and the Marshall defense made the plays to end the inning and strand two more runners on base. The Hilltoppers did not get another base runner on over the final two innings.
Dixon went the distance and earned her 16th win of the season and 92nd of her career. She struck out eight and allowed just three runs, two earned and six hits.
Eloise Tribolet was named the Dot Hicks Significant Sticker Award winner for game one after going 2-for-2 at the plate and scoring one run. The junior outfielder also added one putout in center.
Game Two: Marshall 10, WKU 4
Marshall once again went down early but fought back again for the win in game two.
WKU jumped out to the early lead in the third inning, scoring two runs off one hit and three Marshall errors.
The Herd responded with two runs in the bottom of the third to tie the game. Eloise Tribolet led off with a walk and was followed by a double into left center by Elicia D'Orazio. For D'Orazio, it brought her hit streak to 15 games and her on base streak to 27 as the junior second baseman has reached safely in every game of the 2017 season.
Morgan Zerkle drove a pitch into left field that scored Tribolet from third and moved D'Orazio from second to third. Taylor McCord attempted a squeeze bunt that turned into an infield single, and scored D'Orazio to tie the game.
Two more Herd errors in the fourth helped WKU take back the lead at 4-2. Marshall got out of the inning with two runners stranded on base.
The Marshall bats came back to life in the fifth inning as the Herd scored three runs off four hits and grabbed a one-run advantage. Zerkle led off with a hard hit single to left. After stealing second, Zerkle advanced to third when McCord singled to left. McCord then got into scoring position, stealing second. It was the Herd's 100th stolen base of the season. In just the 27th game, Marshall broke the previous team record for the fewest games to reach 100 steals that was set in 2016 in 30 games.
With one out, sophomore pitcher Ali Burdette put down a squeeze bunt attempt that also turned into an infield single and scored Zerkle from third. After a couple throws in the infield, Burdette advanced to second and put two runners in scoring position. Sophomore Abigail Estrada stepped up next and delivered the timely hit that Marshall needed to centerfield that drove in both McCord and Madi Marshall, who had entered the game to run at second for Burdette.
Burdette started the game in the circle for Marshall and pitched four innings allowing four runs, just one earned and five hits. Freshman Kailee Williamson entered the game and took Marshall into the sixth where Jordan Dixon came off the bench and finished the game. Williamson was credited for the win as the Herd took the lead while Williamson was in the contest. Dixon picked up three more strikeouts and her first save of the year.
Dixon needs just 27 more strikeouts to reach 1,000 for her career.
In the bottom of the sixth, Marshall punched across five more insurance runs. Two hits and two Hilltopper errors led to the Herd extending the lead to six, 10-4. McCord drove in her team leading 35th RBI of the season. Shaelynn Braxton added one RBI on a bases loaded fielder's choice where everyone was safe. Burdette cranked a two RBI double to right center and then Estrada drove across the final run as Braxton came home.
Abigail Estrada was named the Dot Hicks Significant Sticker Award winner for game two after going 2-for-4 with three RBIs including the two RBI single in the fifth to give Marshall a one-run lead.
COACH QUOTES
Head Coach Shonda Stanton:
"It was a great day with the Lil Sis program and all the young gals that came to the game. Coach Bell does a nice job organizing this program and we appreciate the marketing department in executing the game plan with the Lil Sis activities. We had a great crowd at the Dot today."
"What I think is nice, is when we don't play overly well and we still get Ws. I think that is a mark of a great team. In game one, I think we did a really great job of capitalizing on the mistakes that they made. In game two, I was really pleased with Burdette. I thought she gave us a great start and our defense, we just kicked the ball around and gave them four outs in one inning. We were fortunate to get the double play and get out of the inning with them only scoring two. Another mark of a good team is a team that it can be resilient and bounce back and I think we did that. We tried to give it away again and boot the ball around in the next inning but then we answered after that as well."
"What I am pleased about with this group is that we have to understand that it is a game of contrast. We are going to make some mistakes but it is what are we going to do on the positive end and be first up. And that is what we saw today. We got knocked down a few times with booting the ball around but we were first up. You can never count this group out with our offensive production and our speed and taking that next 60 feet."
UP NEXT
Marshall will finish its series with WKU, and attempt to break the program record for most consecutive wins, Sunday March 26 with first pitch set for 12 p.m.
