WAYNE, Neb. – Chadron State softball came up empty in its first two attempts against in-state rivals inside the Wildcat Dome on Saturday, falling 15-2 to Wayne State in five innings and 7-0 to Nebraska-Kearney.
While Wayne State scored early and often against the Eagles in the opening game, the final score of the Kearney game turned out to be deceiving as the two teams were deadlocked at 0-0 through four innings and 1-0 through six innings before a late explosion by the Loper offense in the seventh.
Elia DeLozier was CSC's standout batter for the day, recording three of CSC's nine hits across the two games, including a double and a run scored against Wayne State.
Tiffani Mein had a hit in each contest while
Sophia Brennan provided CSC's only extra-base hit against UNK with a double against the Lopers.
The Eagles started the day with a two-spot in the first inning, taking an early lead over Wayne State, which was playing its first game of the season.
DeLozier hit a one-out bloop double down the left-field line to give the Eagles a runner in scoring position.
Tiffani Mein laid down a bunt and ran it out for a single, but a wild throw went deep into the right field corner and allowed not only DeLozier to score but Mein to circle the bases completely as well, giving CSC a 2-0 lead after three batters.
Unfortunately, those would be the final runs of the day for the Eagles.
Wayne State answered with five runs in the bottom of the first inning, then added two in the second and eight in the third. Much of the damage came against starting pitcher
McKenna Sides, who allowed 11 runs on 13 hits with three walks and one strikeout in 2.2 innings pitched.
Belle Akins came on in relief and allowed four of the third inning's eight runs before she could record the final out as the first five Wildcats to face Akins all reached. After that, however, Akins retired four hitters in a row, setting WSC down in order in the fourth.
Akins stayed in the circle to start the second game against Nebraska Kearney and matched zeroes with Lopers starter Chloe Odle through the first four innings. Akins navigated traffic expertly, escaping a bases loaded with nobody out jam in the first and stranding two runners on with one out in the third.
UNK broke through with a run on three singles in the fifth and Odle continued to shut down the Eagle offense, finishing with a complete-game five-hitter while striking out nine with no walks. The Lopers tagged Akins for two home runs, including a grand slam, in the seventh inning to pull away late.
Chadron State will face the same two opponents tomorrow, taking on UNK at 9 a.m. and Wayne State at 11 a.m.
