TUSCON, Ariz. – The Webster University softball team was back in action this afternoon when they traveled to Tucson, Arizona, to compete in the Tucson Invitational. The Gorloks played two games on the day as they were defeated by Rennselaer Polytechnic (N.Y.) by a final score of 12-8 and then defeated Rochester (N.Y.) Institute of Technology by a final score of 19-5 to improve to 1-7 on the season.

The Gorloks put together 11 hits in their first game against RPI. Rennselaer got on the board first as they rallied for two runs in the top of the first and two runs in the top of the third to jump out to a 4-0 lead. Webster answered back with two runs in the bottom of the third and five runs in the bottom of the fourth to take a 7-4 lead in the game. Rennselaer tied the score at seven over the next two innings, but an RBI single from Kaley Adzick in the bottom of the sixth gave Webster an 8-7 lead heading into the final frame. Rennselaer rallied for five runs in the top of the seventh and closed out the Gorloks in the bottom half of the inning to solidify the win.

Kaley Adzick (0-3) was the starting pitcher for the Gorloks as she allowed 12 hits and seven earned runs in 4.0 innings pitched. Emma Steltzer and Ainsley Hinz pitched in relief of Adzick as they combined to allow three hits and one earned run while striking out two in the final three innings of the game.

Kaley Adzick led the way at the plate as she went 4-for-4 with four RBI. Madi Stichling also had a nice game at the plate as she went 2-for-4 with two RBI. In addition, Jaelin Holdaway went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, Katie Croxall finished with two runs scored and an RBI, and Kaelyn Kearney added an RBI to round out the top performers for Webster.

The Gorloks put together a season high 22 hits in their second game of the day. They got on the board in the top of the first when Jaelin Holdaway hit a two-run homerun to give Webster an early 2-0 lead. The Tigers cut the lead in half in the bottom half of the inning, but a run in the top of the third and six runs in the top of the fifth gave Webster a 9-1 lead late in the game. The Tigers would score two runs in the bottom of the fifth, but a 10-run rally from the Gorloks in the top half of the sixth would extend Websters lead to 19-3. The Tigers would bring two around to score in the bottom of the sixth but the Gorloks picked up the final outs of the game to solidify their first win of the season.

Emma Steltzer was the starter for the Gorloks as she allowed just five hits and one earned run in 2.2 innings. Ainsley Hinz (1-1) and Cheyenne Dickens pitched in relief as the two combined to allow four hits while striking out one in the final 3.1 innings of the game.

Kaley Adzick once again led the way for Webster at the plate as she went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI. Kaelyn Kearney also recorded four hits in the contest as she went 4-for-5 with three runs scored and three RBI. In addition, Jaelin Holdaway finished with two RBI, Katie Croxall recorded three RBI, and Lucy St. John drove in two while Reese Waggoner, Madi Stichling, Aven Ragwar-Hayes, and Paige Thomas each added one RBI.

Webster will continue play in the Tucson Invitational tomorrow, March 12^th when they take on the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse at 9 a.m. MST and Central (Iowa) College at 1:30 p.m. MST. The games will take place at Lincoln Park North Complex in Tucson, Arizona.