SALEM, WV - The Salem International University softball team concluded its 2017 season on Thursday afternoon (Apr. 27) with a pair of games against Kentucky State University at Hope Field. The Tigers split their doubleheader with the Thorobreds, winning game one 11-6 and dropping game two, 4-3. SIU plated seven runs in the bottom of the first inning of game one en route to the victory and would see the Thorobreds score twice in the top of the seventh inning to erase a 3-2 deficit.

Senior Jordan Williams finished the day with three hits at the plate for SIU and was responsible for plating a pair of runs while also scoring two runs. Freshman Morgan Atkinson finished just a home run shy of hitting for the cycle in game one against the Thorobreds, finishing 3-for-3 at the plate with a walk, two runs batted in, and two runs scored in the lead-off spot.

In game one, KSU scored the opening two-runs against junior starter Kayla Lynch. The Thorobreds would capitalize on a throwing error at third base by the Tigers and take a 1-0 lead. The Thorobreds upped the lead to 2-0 with a single back up the middle to score a runner from second base.

The Tigers responded in a big way, plating seven runs in the bottom of the first inning against KSU starter Chante Thome. Atkinson started the frame off for the Tigers with a triple over the right fielder's head. Atkinson would then score as senior Vanessa Jimenez delivered a single to center field to cut the deficit to 2-1. With Jimenez on second, junior Hanna Crew singled to left field and after an error handling the ball, Jimenez would score to make it 2-2. Sophomore Kaleigh Decker gave the Tigers a 3-2 lead as her fielder's choice to the shortstop allowed Crew to score from third base as junior Ariana Garcia got caught in a run-down between but would make it back to second base safely.

With the Tigers going through the lineup a second-time in the bottom of the first inning, Atkinson would cap the scoring with a two-run double to left center to give SIU a 7-2 lead. The big inning would come to an end as Jimenez was called-out on an 0-2 pitch as the ball hit her outside of the batter's box.

KSU trimmed the deficit to 7-3 in the top of the second inning on an infield single that plated a runner from third base. The Tigers would go scoreless in the bottom of the inning before scoring three runs in the bottom of the third inning. Junior Tori Butler delivered the Tigers' second triple of the game with one-out in the frame. Williams plated Butler with a single to right field. After back-to-back two-out singles from Atkinson and Jimenez, Crew gave SIU a 10-3 lead with a two-run single to center field.

The Thorobreds would cut the SIU lead to 10-5 in the top of the fourth inning by plating a pair of runs. KSU tallied three hits in the frame and would strand a pair of runners on base as a ground-out got SIU out of the inning. A two-out solo home run in the top of the sixth inning brought the Thorobreds to within four runs of SIU. The Tigers re-established their five-run lead in the bottom of the frame as Decker delivered her second RBI of the game with a single to right field. SIU looked like it would add more offense in the frame with the bases loaded but a ground-out to the pitcher ended the sixth inning.

Lynch finished-off the game by working a clean seventh inning and securing the 11-6 victory. Lynch improved her record to 10-12 on the season and scattered six runs (three earned) on seven hits while fanning five batters and walking three.

Game two would see the Tigers get onto the scoreboard first as Garcia plated Jimenez with an infield single to make it 1-0. SIU stranded a pair of runners on base as KSU got out of the jam by recording a ground-out and a strikeout.

With the 1-0 score holding for the Tigers heading to the top of the third inning, KSU rallied to score two runs against junior starter Katie Holestin. That 2-1 lead for the Thorobreds held until SIU manufactured a run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Crew started the inning with a single to left field and would advance to second on a fielding error by the left fielder. Sophomore Morgan Smith pinch-ran for Crew and would advance to third on an alert play as Garcia grounded-out to the pitcher with no one covering third base. Smith would then score the tying run on a wild pitch.

SIU took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning as Williams narrowly missed her second-career home run by hitting the fence in left field to allow sophomore Jordan Whitaker to score from first base. With runners on second and third and no-outs, the Thorobreds would catch a break as SIU recorded back-to-back pop-ups in the infield and a ground-ball to the shortstop.

The momentum would allow KSU to score a pair of runs in the top of the seventh inning and erase a 3-2 deficit and turn it into a 4-3 lead. Holestin started the inning for the Tigers and would record one-out before yielding way to freshman Rosey Romick. Romick entered the game after KSU knotted the score 3-3. KSU took a 4-3 lead with an RBI ground-ball to second base that allowed a runner from third base to score.

Despite out-hitting KSU 10-9 and seeing the Thorobreds record four errors in the contest, the seventh inning rally proved costly for the Tigers in the 4-3 loss. Holestin suffered the loss for the Tigers, falling to 6-14 on the season. She allowed four runs on nine hits with six strikeouts and three walks. Crew, Garcia, and Williams each recorded two-hit games for SIU, while Jimenez worked a pair of walks at the plate.