EIU softball was down 8-0, going into the fourth inning of the first game of a doubleheader. One inning later, senior catcher Lexie Griffin was up to bat with bases loaded in a tie game.
“I knew it was my time to step up,” Griffin said. “I wasn’t stepping up when I was supposed to, so I was seeing pitches, and I was just fouling them off till I got mine, and I knew I had to do it for my team.”
Griffin hit a grand slam to put Eastern ahead for good, as EIU went on to beat Lindenwood 12-9 in the first game. While in the second game Eastern took the lead early and never let go as EIU won 5-1 and swept the weekend series from Lindenwood on Saturday at Williams Field.
“I think we’re just excited,” Hance said. “That’s a good team, so to get a sweep against a good team like that, we’re just stoked. I’m so proud of all the girls.”
Lindenwood (11-14, 2-4) started the first game fast, as senior pitcher Karlie McKenzie let in four earned runs in two innings pitched. Senior pitcher Bryanna French came into the game in the third inning. She allowed five earned runs in as many innings, including four in the fourth, but still got the win.
Co-head coach Dan Paulson said that French stayed in the game no matter what even with three errors from the Panthers.
“The first game was another gritty, never-say-die,” Paulson said. “Our pitcher, Frenchie, she just pitched her heart out that game. She stayed in it. We kind of let her down a little bit defensively, and she just kept going.”
Eastern (11-16, 6-0) had no hits until the fourth inning when Hance hit a single to center field. Three more hits, including a three-run triple into the gap in center and right field by junior outfielder Alisha Frederick, made the game 8-5.
“I honestly don’t remember the whole at-bat, but I remember that they told me to swing hard because I was being timid, so I just hacked at it, and it just ended up being where somebody wasn’t,” Frederick said.
In the fifth inning, the Panthers had a single and two walks while the bases were loaded to tie the game 8-8. Griffin would then hit the grand slam as EIU wouldtake a lead for the first time in the series.
One more run in the seventh for Lindenwood ended the scoring as the Panthers held on to the lead.
Eastern started down behind again just like the first game of the series.
“I also think it kind of shows us, there’s no game that we’re ever completely out of, we’re in every game,” Griffin said. “If we go down that quick in the first inning, we can always come back.”
The second game was very different. In the second inning, Hance singled up the right side of the field to drive in sophomore utility player Abbi Hatton to take a 1-0 lead. Eastern would not trail again.
It was the first time in the series that EIU led in a game early. Frederick said that the mental shift was intentional in the second game.
“We just kept waiting for them to score first, so we’re just gonna pretend like they have eight runs up there, and we’re gonna score in the first inning, and we ended up getting in the second, so close enough,” Frederick said.
EIU would score two runs in the third and then one run in both the fifth and sixth innings to go up for good.
Sophomore pitcher Rylan Gick pitched a complete game, letting in only one run in the third inning. She had a strikeout in every inning but the first inning and finished with seven.
Lindenwood had six hits, but Gick only gave up one in the last four innings.
“I just knew I had to go out there and trust my spin and trust what I can do and what I know I can do, and also trust my defense behind me and that they got my back,” Gick said.
Said Paulson: “Now we know no matter what the score is, we’re still in it, we can come back. So that’ll help our confidence, our swagger, moving forward.”
EIU goes on the road to play Southern Illinois Edwardsville next weekend for its next OVC series. However, Eastern goes on the road to Murray State and Lipscomb in its next two midweek games. The Panthers play Murray State on Tuesday at 3 p.m.
Patrick Schmitz can be reached at 581-2812 or at [email protected].
