Oxford, AL – Stetson softball kept its postseason hopes alive with a dominant 16-8 win over Austin Peay in a high-scoring elimination game, but their run came to an end later that day with a 9-4 loss to Eastern Kentucky in the ASUN Championship Semifinals.
In the first game of the day,
Kennedy Temples started in the circle for the Hatters, throwing 2.1 innings and giving up three runs on two hits and a walk. The Hatters set the tone early, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first.
Addison Foster,
Kami Eppley, and
Amber Chumley loaded the bases, with
Devon Weller driving in the first run on a sacrifice fly.
Dylan Anthony added an RBI single, and two more runs came across on a hit-by-pitch and a walk.
Austin Peay got one back in the second, but Stetson erupted for eight runs in the bottom of the inning. Foster led off with a triple and scored on
Nadia English's single. RBI hits from Weller and Anthony, followed by a double from Foster and another single from English, pushed the Hatters' lead to 11-1.
The Governors responded with six runs in the third, forcing Stetson to go to the bullpen.
Ava Braswell and then
Hayley Arnold came in to steady things, with Arnold ultimately earning the win after throwing 2.1 innings of one-run ball with three hits allowed and a strikeout.
Stetson answered Austin Peay's surge with a five-run third inning of their own. With two outs and the bases loaded, Eppley reached on a fielder's choice, scoring two. Chumley followed with a three-run home run to right field, extending the lead to 16-7. Austin Peay added a run in the fourth, but Arnold shut them down the rest of the way to seal the 16-8 win in five innings.
In the semifinal match up against Eastern Kentucky, Arnold got the start but struggled early, giving up four runs in 1.1 innings. Stetson scored first in the second inning on a sacrifice fly from Foster, but Eastern Kentucky responded with four runs in the bottom half to take control.
The Hatters trimmed the lead to 4-2 in the third when
Irianis Garcia drew a bases-loaded walk. However, Eastern Kentucky pulled away with five more runs, extending the lead to 9-2. Stetson rallied for two runs in the sixth behind RBI doubles from English and Anthony, but that was as close as they would get, falling 9-4.
Stetson concludes a strong season with a 33-28 overall record and a 14-10 mark in conference play. Entering the ASUN Tournament as the #4 seed, the Hatters finished with three wins in five games, ultimately falling one step short of the championship game.
