CLERMONT, Fla. – Missouri Baptist Softball went 2-3 over the weekend at the PFX Spring Games in Clermont, Florida. The Spartans started their Florida trip off with a win over the University of Northwestern Ohio on Friday morning and picked up another win on Saturday against Robert Morris University.
 
Game One: University of Northwestern Ohio – W, 5-2
The Spartans got off to a bad start in their Friday morning matchup against the Racers, giving up two runs in the first inning. Delissa Dennison and Aubrey Burnst kept things relatively quiet thereafter.
 
MBU eventually broke that silence in the top of the sixth inning. Caitlin McNiff scored the first run thanks to a UNOH error to cut the lead in half. With runners still on base, Amber Mobbs doubled to center that brought home Ally Gischer to knot things back at two.
 
The game remained tied into extra innings. In the top of the ninth, the Spartans were able to break through once again against Burnst for three runs. Rachel Galbraith recorded an RBI single to right to give the Spartans a lead followed by a Jordan Corby single that brought home two more.
 
The Racers plated one more run before the end of the game but were ultimately shut down by a strong performance out of the bullpen by Ally Dunaway. MBU took their first match of the PFX Spring Games with a 5-3 final.
 
Game Two: Cleary University – L, 3-7
Friday's second game against Cleary University got off to a similar start for the Spartans but did not end as well as the first. Cleary posted three runs in the first inning to take an early lead.
 
In the bottom of the second, Missouri Baptist scored two runs on an error by the opposing third baseman. The ladies tied things at three when a double steal brought Galbraith across the plate.
 
The Cougars responded immediately in the top of the third inning with four runs. Unfortunately for MBU, that would be all she wrote falling 7-3 in the 11:30 a.m. matchup.
 
Game Three: (RV) Bellevue University – L, 1-4
Bellevue University was the last game on the docket for the Spartans on Friday. Senior Delissa Dennison had a strong day against the formidable opponent, posting five innings of work with three earned runs and six strikeouts.
 
Bellevue posted all three runs against Dennison in the third inning on Emily Rochford's three-run homerun. The Spartans posted a lone run in the fifth followed by another Bruin run in the sixth to give game three a 4-1 final score.
 
Game Four: Robert Morris University - W, 10-2
The Spartans got back on track in Saturday's first match against the Robert Morris University Eagles. MBU defeated their opponents in six innings posting 10 runs on 13 hits.
 
The first two runs of the game came on RBIs from Allison Pingel and Caitlin McNiff. The Eagles found the scoreboard with two runs in the bottom half of the same inning. The Spartans regained their lead in the top of the fourth after Pingel was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
 
Missouri Baptist put up three more in the fifth and four in the sixth to mercy rule Robert Morris for their second win of the Florida trip. MaKenzie Harbaugh, Allison Pingel, and Katelyn Turbyfill all had two RBIs in the game while Megan Pfeiffer led the team with three hits.
 
Game Five: (22) Saint Xavier University – L, 3-6
The ladies fell in their second game on Saturday to the 22^nd ranked Saint Xavier Cougars after shaky defense and a dry offense. Dennison threw a complete game giving up just three earned on five hits.
 
McNiff homered early in the first inning to give the Spartans an early 2-0 lead. The Cougars came back with four in the second and two in the fifth to give them a firm grip on the game.
 
The last MBU run came in the bottom of the seventh after McNiff was able to put a ball in play to plate Jordan Corby. The Spartans fell 6-3 to the Cougars, dropping their record below the .500 mark at 5-6.

Next Game:
The Spartans have Sunday off, but resume the PFX Spring Games Monday against (RV) Lawrence Tech at 10:15 a.m., Saint Ambrose University at 12:30 p.m., and William Penn University at 5 p.m.