The Creighton softball team held onto the top spot in the Missouri Valley standings with its fifth straight conference win over the Southern Illinois University Salukis at the CU Sports Complex last weekend.
Creighton, now 12-3 in the conference, won two of the three games in the series. The match-up began Saturday afternoon with the Jays winning a 6-5 come-from-behind thriller, followed by a 1-6 nightcap defeat. The Jays went on to clinch the series with a 5-0 win on Sunday.
The series opener kept fans on the edge of their seats with a 0-0 score at the end of the seventh inning. SIU lit a spark in the top of the eighth to bring home five Salukis before the Jays rallied for a six-run comeback.
“That was the biggest and best comeback I’ve ever been apart of,” head coach Brent Vigness said. “So many people had to stay focused. It wasn’t just one or two that had a big at-bat.”
Freshman outfielder Kelsey Allender started the Bluejay offense with an infield single followed by a walk drawn by senior infielder Ashley Frutos. Freshman utility player Blake Ringle delivered with a three-run pinch-hit home run to cut the Saluki lead to just two at 5-3. Singles by junior utility player Blair Lowe and senior infielder Amy Baker and a walk drawn by junior Alexis Cantu put three Jays on base. With loaded bases, a two-RBI-single from junior outfielder Ellen Homan clinched the victory.
SIU was able to post another five-run inning in game two, this time taking home the win. After connecting on three quick singles in the fifth, SIU loaded the bases with no outs. A walk and two more singles pushed the visitor’s lead to 5-0 before the end of the inning.
After a scoreless first five innings, the Jays went run-for-run with the Salukis in the sixth, ending the game with a 6-1 defeat.
Creighton took home the series win on Sunday afternoon with a 5-0 shutout. The Jays forced three pitcher changes, with eight of the nine starters producing a hit.
“That was a real complete game on our part,” Vigness said. “We made tremendous adjustments to what we saw on Saturday.”
A Ringle double got the Jays off to an early 1-0 lead and back-to-back solo home runs by Baker and Cantu put the score at 3-0 in the bottom of the third. A single RBI by Allender and another Cantu home run brought home the win.
Junior pitcher Becca Changstrom kept SIU off the scoreboard, allowing only three hits on the day. The complete-game win marked her 11th double-digit strikeout performance of the season.
The Jays traveled to the No. 20 University of Nebraska on Wednesday looking to avenge a 4-3 loss at the CU Sports Complex from earlier this month, but lost again 6-0. The Huskers hit solo home runs in the second and fourth innings, then blew the game open in the bottom of the sixth with a grand slam.
Junior outfielder Ellen Homan hit an infield single in the second inning, while freshman infielder Erin McGonigal recorded a single in the third for her first career hit in her first start. However, no other Bluejay managed to get a hit and Creighton left five runners stranded on base in the shutout.
The Jays now sit at 26-13 on the season and return to conference play this weekend as the team travels to Springfield, Mo. to take on the Missouri State University Bears. First pitch of the Saturday double-header is set for noon.