MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Webster University opened its 23rd season of intercollegiate softball here Saturday as the Gorloks fell in back-to-back games to Maryville College and Rhodes College at the Rhodes Softball Field.
In Saturday's sesason opener, the Gorloks fell 12-1 in five innings to Maryville and then suffered a 10-1 setback in five innings to Rhodes in the first two games of interim head coach
Katie Griffith's coaching career.
With the two setbacks, Webster opens the season 0-2 for the second consecutive season and third time in the last four years, while Maryville is 1-0 and Rhodes improved to 6-1 on the season.
Saturday's games marked just the second time since preseason practice began in late January that the Gorloks were able to be outside and that lack of outside practicing played a toll, especially in the opener against the Scots as Webster committed five errors that led to seven unearned runs. For the day, Webster committed seven errors and allowed seven unearned runs.
On the day, Webster recorded a total of four hits in the two games and drew two walks in 10 innings of action.
In the opener against Maryville, the Scots used two hits and an error in the bottom of the first inning to plate four unearned runs. The big hit in the inning was a 2-run double by Reid Ballard off of junior pitcher
Tori Lonsdale (Belleville, Ill./Southwestern Illinois), who got the start in the circle in her first game as a Gorlok.
Webster would get one of those runs back in the top of the second as junior catcher
Darian Morlan (Duchesne, Utah/Trinidad State) recorded the first hit of the season on a single down the left field line, but she was thrown at second trying to turn the hit into a double. The next batter, junior left fielder
Abby Burroughs (Edwardsville, Ill./Triad) coaxed a walk from Maryville pitcher Morgan Corland. Burroughs would move to second on a sacrifice bunt by freshman designated player
Sheyla Iniguez (Riverside, Calif./Bloomington) and scored when senior third baseman
Brienna Sheperd (Central Point, Ore./College of the Redwoods) delivered an RBi single down the left field line. Sheperd, who moved to second on the throw home, would be left at second when sophomore right fielder
Skiela Martinez (Whittier, Calif./California) flew out to left to end the inning.
That would be the final time Webster would get anyone on base as Corland (1-0) retired the next nine Gorlok hitters in order as she tossed five innings and allowed just two hits and one run, while walking one and striking out two. In her five innings, Corland walked one and had two strikeouts.
Maryville pushed its lead to 5-1 in the bottom of the second thanks to a walk, stolen base, ground out and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Christina White.
The Scots lead grew to 6-1 in the bottom of the third inning as two Gorloks errors in the inning led to another unearned run off of Lonsdale.
Lonsdale (0-1) tossed three-plus innings in her collegiate debut and allowed just four hits, but nine runs (three earned runs), while walking three and fanning none. Johnson pitched one inning and allowed four hits and three runs and had one strikeout.
Maryville put the game away in the bottom of the fourth as they sent 11 hitters to the plate and recorded six hits and scored six runs to push its lead to 12-1. The big hits in the inning were a 2-run triple by White off of Lonsdale and a 3-run homer off of junior
Kaitlyn Johnson (East Alton, Ill./Greenville University), who relieved Lonsdale after White's triple, from Taylor Campbell.
The Scots, who were also playing their first games of the season on Saturday, had eight hits in the opener, including two hits and two runs scored by Alexus Murray. White and Campbell each had three RBIs and Ballard had two RBIs.
Meanwhile, in the game against Rhodes, the Lynx got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first inning thanks to two hits and a throwing error by Morlan to take a 1-0 lead off of freshman pitcher
Arianna Arias (Pomona, Calif./Bishop Amat), who got the start in the circle against Rhodes.
In the second inning, junior first baseman
Avery Boccella (Gilbert, Ariz./Trinidad State) recorded a one-out single to center and would eventually reach second on a wild pitch from Rhodes' Bri Maniscalco. Boccella, though, would remain stranded at second as Sheperd struck out to end the inning.
The Gorloks finally got on the scoreboard in the third inning as Martinez led off the inning with a double, moved to third on a bunt by freshman right fielder
Gabrielle Novak (St. Louis, Mo./Notre Dame) and scored when Arias reached on an error by Rhodes third baseman Samantha Feinstein. Arias would eventually reach third on a ground out by Iniguez, but was left stranded when Maniscalco avoided further trouble by forcing Morlan to foul out to the catcher to end the inning.
Rhodes added a second run in the bottom of the third inning thanks to a double, a single and an RBI groundout by Marisa Moore.
The Lynx broke the game open in the bottom of the fourth as they plated eight runs off of six hits and a Gorlok errror to take a 10-1 lead. In the inning, Webster hit two batters and tossed four wild pitches, including three by Arias.
Arias (0-1) tossed 3.1 innings in her collegiate debut and allowed seven hits and eight runs (seven earned), while walking five and striking out none. Johnson relieved Arias with two outs in the fourth and allowed three hits and two earned runs, while recording a strikeout.
In the fifth, the Gorloks went down in order to seal Rhodes' win.
Maniscalco (3-1) pitched all five innings for the Lynx and allowed two hits and one run, while walking one and fanning five.
Rhodes finished with 10 hits as Feinstein, Peyton Clark and Lauren King each had two hits in the win, while Anna Kula stole two bases and drew two walks. Rhodes stole four bases in the game.
The Gorloks will conclude its four game trip to Memphis on Sunday, Feb. 17 as they once again face Maryville at 10 a.m. and conclude the weekend with a 2 p.m. game against Rhodes.
