BELTON, TEXAS - The Belhaven University softball team made sure to finish the 2017 season on a good note, earning a 7-5 victory over Mary Hardin-Baylor in 10 innings Saturday from Dee Dillon Field.
With the score tied at 4-4 in the top of the 10th inning and
Brooke Laigast standing on third base for the Blazers, senior
Mary Austin Barber delivered an RBI single to score Laigast for the go-ahead run. Two batters later, senior
Hannah Holloway smacked a two-run home run to give Belhaven a 7-4 advantage.
Mary Hardin-Baylor (26-14) put one run on the board in the bottom of the tenth, but senior pitcher
Taylor Surrento retired the side without any further damage to give the Blazers the extraordinary win.
Belhaven held a lead over the Crusaders for the majority of the game. In the top of the first,
Cassidy Blount singled to plate
Makayla Reed from third and give the Blazers an early lead.
Blount drove in two more runs in the third, crushing her first home run of the season to score Lyon and give the Green and Gold a three-run cushion.
Mary Hardin-Baylor broke up the potential Surrento shutout in the bottom of the fourth, scoring twice on two hits.
In the top of the sixth, the Blazers drew two walks and were helped by a UMHB fielding error, allowing Barber to come home from third. However, in the bottom half of the frame, Karley Free hit a two-run shot to even the game at four apiece. Both teams went three-up, three-down in the seventh to send the game to extra-innings.
Belhaven finished with 12 hits as a team, which ties the team's season-high. Lyon and
Crystal Kehtel recorded three hits each while Blount tallied two hits and three RBI.
Surrento tossed her 12th complete game of the season, allowing three earned runs and six hits in 10 innings pitched. She picks up her 10th win of the year.
The Blazers wrap up the 2017 season with an 18-20 overall record, winning eight of its last nine games and 14 of its final 23.
For the latest news on Belhaven Blazers athletics, follow @BelhavenBlazers on
Twitter and
Instagram, and like us on
Facebook.