The Pioneers closed their remarkable season with a 6-4 victory over Ottawa (KS) at the National Tournament on Monday. Ottawa started well, scoring 1 run in the first and 3 more in the second to take a 4-0 lead. MNU's
Gale Christner took the mound to stop the bleeding, and she held Ottawa scoreless the through the sixth inning.
MNU got on the board in the board in the bottom of the second on an RBI groundout by
Ashley Salter. The Pioneers drew a run closer in the bottom of the third when
Emily True nailed her 5th homer of the season over the left field fence, making the score 4-2.
MNU put a big rally together in the bottom of the sixth.
Brianna Payne reached on an error and advanced to second on a passed ball. Back-to-back walks loaded the bases, and Payne scored on a stolen base when the catcher tried a pickoff at first.
Ashley Mayhle followed with a single up the middle, driving home 2 and giving the Pioneers a 5-4 lead. Consecutive errors led to another run, and MNU went into the seventh with a 6-4 lead. Senior
Penny Eastman closed out the game and picked up a save, making a winner out of
Gale Christner, who allowed just 1 hit and struck out 4 in 4 innings.
Emily True (1-2, R, HR, RBI, BB) and
Ashley Mayhle (2-3, R, 2B, RBI) led the offense.
The Pioneers finish 46-8.
Box and play-by-play
Taylor Ryal's Daily Blog
