WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – The seventh-ranked Grand Valley State softball team won two more games Monday (March 7) on day two of their spring trip. The Lakers beat Missouri-St. Louis, 4-1, in game one then out-slugged Southwestern Minnesota State, 15-8, in game two to improve to 8-0 to start the season, their best start since 2012.
Game one went scoreless through four innings, with just one hit between the two sides. The Lakers would get a leadoff single from
Morgan Wagner to start the fifth then, after a pair of ground-outs moved pinch-runner
Alexis McCullough to third, five straight lakers reached on four hits and an error to bring home all four runs for the game.
Kaitlin Lynch laced a single through the right side to open up the scoring then
Joanna Cirrincione plated a pair with a single before a
Lydia Goble RBI single to round out the scoring.
Genesis Eggart (W, 3-0) pitched a complete game, allowing a run on two hits and a walk while striking out four.
Lynch went 5-for-5 in game two with an RBI and three runs scored while Goble launched a grand slam, her second homer of the season, and
Morgan Wagner went deep with a two-run shot for her first of the season.
Megan Koenigshof had three runs driven in with a pair of hits and four other Lakers drove in a single run as everyone in the starting lineup reached base and eight doing so multiple times.
The Lakers scored twice in the first inning but SMSU responded with four in the home half of the frame. Goble's slam capped a five-run response in the second and, after a scoreless third, the Lakers would score in each of their last four innings, including a four-run sixth to give themselves separation.
Hannah Beatus (4-0) earned the win with four innings of relief, allowing three runs on three hits and five walks while striking out four.
Ashley Platek started in the circle with three innings of work.
The Lakers continue their trip Tuesday (March 8) with games against Southern Indiana at 10:00 AM and Bloomfield (N.J.) at 12:15 PM. Visit gvsulakers.com or follow @GVSUSoftball on social media for live coverage links and updates.
