GALLERY: Herd sweep doubleheader, improve to 23-10
“I can’t wait to just see them grow over the next few years and see what they can provide for the Herd.” -Junior infielder Shaelynn Braxton
More stories from Malcolm Walton
Marshall University’s softball team (23-10, 4-5) swept Wright State University (7-23, 3-2) Tuesday in its doubleheader at the Dot Hicks Field.
The Herd won the first match against the Raiders 3-2 in dramatic fashion.
Sophomore outfielder Morgan Zerkle hit a walk-off single to close out the game.
However, the Herd ran away with the second match of the doubleheader— winning 11-2.
Katalin Lucas, junior center for the Herd, hit a three-run home run in the second game. It was Lucas’ fourth of the season.
“My first at-bat wasn’t that great,” Lucas said. “I hit a short grounder right to the pitcher. So, for my next at-bat, I just told myself ‘better contact point and wait on the ball.’ I was just able to track it better, and I hit it really hard up the middle for the home run.”
Shaelynn Braxton, junior infielder for the Herd, said while the Raiders gave the team a tough match in the first game, the second match showed the level Marshall is truly capable of playing.
“I think we controlled ourselves much better in the second game than in the first,” Braxton said. “We handled ourselves well during the first, to a certain extent, but we still allowed them to hang in there with us. In the second game, we were really focused and played the kind of softball we are accustomed to playing. And by doing that, we were able to have more quality at-bats than we did in the first game.”
The Herd’s impressive day also saw significant contributions from a few of its freshman players.
“I love our freshman class this year,” Braxton said. “Taylor McCord has been consistently playing well this season. And to see Madi Marshall and [Jordan] Colliflower also playing well in the middle of the season and really getting their chance out there, it’s been great. Colliflower got her first career hit today, and that was awesome. Madi Marshall just got her first hit over the weekend. That’s what I’m excited for.”
Marshall’s next match is a doubleheader against conference-foe University of North Texas scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday at Dot Hicks Field.
Malcolm Walton can be contacted at [email protected].
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