FHSU (10-9, 4-4 MIAA) heads on the road during spring break week, traveling to Metro State on Tuesday as part of an eight-game road trip.
Complete recaps of Saturday’s games are below.
Pittsburg State 10, Fort Hays State 2 (Eight innings)
Fort Hays State used a seventh inning rally to force extras but were outgunned in the eighth and dropped a 10-2 contest in the first game of the day.
Paxton Duran (4-5) took the loss, throwing 7.2 innings with eight runs allowed (two earned). Duran struck out seven and allowed four walks. Sarah Cochran got the final out of the eighth inning, giving up two runs (zero earned) on three hits.
Kylie Strand with 3-for-5 at the plate, while Erin Elmore had a hit and two walks.
PSU struck first, using a single from Chelsyn Mitchell with one out in the third to score Ashton Pratt and take a 1-0 lead.
FHSU threatened early and often offensively, loading the bases in the first and third while putting a leadoff runner on third in the second. That persistence paid for the Tigers in the third, when Vaupel was hit by a pitch with bases loaded to bring Elmore home and tie it, 1-1.
That score held until the fifth, when Nicole Nease led off the inning with a solo home run to left to regain the Gorillas’ lead, 2-1.
Trailing in the bottom of the seventh, Strand led off the inning with a single to left field, followed by a walk from Elmore. With one out, Samantha Villarreal was hit by a pitch to load the bases, and after a pickoff at second base, Vaupel reloaded the bases with a walk of her own. FHSU tied the game in the next at bat as Duran roped an infield single to the shortstop, allowing Strand to score.
In extras, FHSU was hurt by three errors and a grand slam as Pittsburg State pulled away late for the win.
Pittsburg State 7, Fort Hays State 2
Fort Hays State fell behind early and couldn’t recover in the doubleheader finale, falling 7-2 to Pittsburg State.
Kelsey Kimminau (4-5) took the complete game loss, allowing four earned runs with three strikeouts.
Tori Beltz was 2-for-3 on the night with two RBI while Elmore,Villareal and Dobson had the Tigers’ other hits.
After allowing three runs in the first and third innings, FHSU struck back in the third with two runs, cutting the deficit to 6-2. With one out, Dobson reached on an infield single before moving to third on Erin Elmore‘s single. In the next at-bat, Beltz took an 0-1 pitch down the left field line to drive Dobson and Elmore home on a double.
Pitt State added one more in the fourth, but that was it for offense on the day