JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – Webster University continued its strong offensive play here Tuesday afternoon as they rapped out 11 hits and scored a season high 14 runs en route to posting a 14-4 win in five innings over MacMurray College in the first game of a St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader at Palmer Field on the MacMurray campus.

With the win, Webster improves to 8-21 overall and 5-10 in the SLIAC, while MacMurray falls to 3-22 overall and 2-11 in the league.

Over its last three games, Webster has recorded 28 hits and has scored a total of 22 runs and the 14 runs scored on Tuesday were the most scored by the Gorloks in a game since they tallied 15 runs last season against Bluffton during its spring break trip to Florida.

In Tuesday's opener, Webster put the game away by scoring 11 runs in the top of the fourth. The 11 runs came off of six hits and three MacMurray errors that led to eight unearned runs in the inning.

Senior designated player Brienna Sheperd (Central Point, Ore./College of the Redwoods) paced Webster's offense with a 3-for-4 day at the plate, while junior third baseman Breelyn Craig (Victorville, Calif./Trinidad State), junior first baseman Kaitlyn Johnson (East Alton, Ill./Greenville University) and freshman leftfielder Taylor Jackson (Calgary, Alberta/Bishop Grandin) each had two hits in the win. Jackson added a career high 5 RBI, which is tied for 12th most in a game in school history, while junior centerfielder Abby Burroughs (Edwardsville, Ill./Triad) had three RBI.

In the second inning, Sheperd reached on a single to center to open the inning, moved to second on bunt and would eventually reach third on a single to left by Craig that loaded the bases. The next batter, Johnson, reached on a throwing error by Highlander shortstop Brooke Allen and that allowed two runs to score to give the Gorloks a 2-0 lead. The third run of the inning would come in on a wild pitch by MacMurray's Kiersten Hann.

MacMurray tied the game in the bottom of the second thanks to a 2-run double by Meka Elmore and an RBI single by Allen off of freshman pitcher Arianna Arias (Pomona, Calif./Bishop Amat).

The Gorloks, though, would send 15 hitters to the plate in the top of the fourth and score 11 runs all with two outs to push its lead to 14-3. WU got the scoring started in the frame on an RBI double to center by Johnson and Jackson would then follow with a 2-run homer to give the Gorloks a 6-3 lead. The double by Johnson was her first career extra base hit. Junior catcher Darian Morlan (Duchesne, Utah/Trinidad State) then reached on an error and Arias was hit by a pitch before Burroughs hit a 3-run home run to give the Gorloks a 9-3 lead. The homer by Burroughs' was her sixth of the season and also gave her 22 RBI on the year.

Following Burroughs' homer, Sheperd reached on a single to center, moved to third when freshman shortstop Sheyla Iniguez (Riverside, Calif./Bloomington) reached on an error and both Sheperd and Iniguez would score when freshman rightfielder Haley Kesler (Bell City, Mo./Scott County Central) reached on a fielding error by MacMurray centerfielder Kerrigan Horn to make it 11-3. After Craig and Johnson drew walks to load the bases, Jackson would drill a pitch by Haley Icenogle to right center for a bases loaded triple to give the Gorloks a 14-3 lead.

MacMurray would get one of those runs back in the bottom of the fourth off of Johnson, who relieved Arias in the circle. In the inning, Devin Battlefield reached on a one-out infield single, moved to second when Lauren Anderson was hit by a pitch and both runners advanced a base when Alexis Doyle drew a walk to load the bases. The next hitter, Taylor Vieria, hit a fielder's choice to Iniguez at short and on the play, Battlefield would score thanks to fielding error by senior catcher Casey Cullinane (Simi Valley, Calif./College of the Redwoods). Johnson would get out of the inning without further damage as she forced Icenogle to foul out and she struck out Hann to end the inning.

Webster put two runners on base in the fifth thanks to singles by Arias and Sheperd, but those two runners would be stranded at second and third.
Johnson would allow a hit and pitch around an error by Iniguez to seal the Gorloks 14-4 win.

Arias (3-5) earned the win in the circle for the Gorloks as she pitched three innings and allowed five hits and three runs, while striking out one and walking none. Johnson would pitch the final two innings and allow two hits and one unearned run, while walking one and fanning two.

Hann (2-11) took the loss for MacMurray as she tossed 3.2 innings and allowed seven hits and nine runs (four earned), while walking two and striking out one.

Battlefield and Allen each had two hits in the loss as MacMurray recorded a total of seven hits in the game.

Both teams left six runners on base and the Gorloks stole three bases in the win, including Craig picking up her first collegiate stolen base.

The two teams will complete the doubleheader with a second game that was slated to begin about 5 p.m.