HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. –
Sydney Ferrante and
Paige McQueen each posted two-hit games as the Northern Kentucky University softball team fell to Kennesaw State, 14-3, to conclude the three-game Atlantic Sun Conference series between the teams on Sunday afternoon.
Three Kennesaw State batters posted three-hit games, including Megan Veringa and Rachel Dennis, who each had a double and a home run. Veringa drove in five runs while Dennis collected four RBIs. Kara Chambers also posted three hits, scored four runs and stole two bases as the Owls improved to 28-14 overall and 9-5 in A-Sun play.
Katelyn Roy and
Ashlynn Roberts added RBIs for the Norse, who dropped to 5-26 overall and 1-11 in conference action.
The Owls rallied for three runs in the opening frame to take the early advantage. Natalie Rhodes opened the game with a five-pitch walk, stole second and reached third on a sacrifice bunt before Chambers brought home the game's first run on an infield single. Veringa followed with an RBI single. An error and a Dennis single loaded the bases for Emily Bishop, who was hit by a pitch to score Veringa and make it a 3-0 game.
Veringa added two more runs in the second inning with a line shot over the wall in straightaway centerfield, scoring Chambers, whose two-out single started the scoring rally. A Dennis home run keyed a five-run third for the Owls as well. Missy Perkowski's two-out double set up an RBI-triple by Rhodes followed by an infield single from Denton to score Rhodes, then Veringa struck again with a two-run double, extending the KSU lead to 10-0.
The Norse got on the board in the bottom of the third inning.
KC Straley got things started with a leadoff walk, followed by a
Sydney Ferrante single to center that moved Straley to third.
Paige McQueen blooped a single over the head of the Owls' third baseman. Chambers recovered the ball and caught Straley in a rundown to the plate, but an errant throw allowed Straley to score and the runners to move up to second and third on the play.
Katelyn Roy followed with a sacrifice fly to score Ferrante and
Ashlynn Roberts hit a two-out single up the middle to bring in McQueen, cutting the KSU advantage to 10-3.
A three-run double by Dennis followed by an RBI-single for Bishop pushed four runs across for the Owls in the fifth inning to reach the final score.
Paige Matthews (11-4) struck out seven batters and allowed just one earned run in the complete-game victory for the Owls. The loss fell to
Ashlynn Roberts (3-10), who pitched 2.2 innings in the start.
NKU begins a stretch of 12-games away from home over a 12-day span on Tuesday when the Norse head to Indianapolis, Indiana, to take on IUPUI for a doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.
