The Ouachita Lady Tigers and seniors Megan Askew and Bailey Sanders closed out their last home games of the 2013 season on a high note, sweeping a doubleheader with Southern Arkansas. The Lady Tigers took a 10 inning thriller to kick off the afternoon, winning 1-0, before a pair of solo home runs gave them a 2-1 win in game two.
The first game of the day was a pitcher’s duel, with Ouachita’s Abbi Frakes and Southern Arkansas’ Hanna Gill posting shutout performances through nine innings of play. Frakes recorded eight strikeouts and only gave up two hits in 10 innings of work, which was enough to get her a win as her offense came through for her in the tenth inning.
Michaela Hopkins started the 10th inning on second base due to international tie rules, giving the Lady Tigers a better shot at scoring against Gill. Gill started off the inning by intentionally walking Parrish Reed and giving the Lady Tigers runners on first and second.
Megan Askew came up shortly after and drew a walk, in large part due to her ability to hit the ball deep. Jocelyn Jones stepped to the plate following Askew’s walk and ended the game as the hero, smashing a ball to left field and scoring Hopkins to win the game. Of the Lady Tigers’ five hits in the game, Jones had two, including the only RBI of the game.
The second game of the afternoon saw a couple more runs but was another pitcher’s duel. It looked like Southern Arkansas was trying to kick start an offensive surge in the first, as they put a couple of runners on early. A passed ball ended up allowing a runner to score from third, giving them an early lead.
The Lady Tigers didn’t score until the fourth inning, but when they did, it was in a big way. Hopkins stepped to the plate and absolutely clobbered the ball, as it sailed over the fence in left field and tied the game at 1-1.
Askew, who was looking to close her final home stand as a senior with a bang, did just that in the fifth inning. She came to the plate and recorded her 10th home run of the year, launching a ball to right center and giving her team a 2-1 lead.
Abbi Frakes came into the game and threw 3.2 innings while picking up her second win of the afternoon. She recorded seven strikeouts during her time on the mound in the second game, giving her a total of 15 during 13.2 innings on Sunday. She only gave up two hits during her time in the second game.
Askew finished the second game with a 1-of-2 performance; including an RBI, a run scored and a walk. Teresa Mursuli finished the game hitting 2-of-3, but wasn’t ever able to get herself to home plate.
Although the regular season is over for the Lady Tigers, their season is not. They will travel to Bentonville, Arkansas on Thursday to participate in the Great American Conference tournament. The Lady Tigers have a tough draw to kick off the tournament, as they will face off with No. 2 seeded East Central University on Thursday at noon.
