No. 5 Walters State fall twice to Gordon State

BARNESVILLE, GA – No. 5 Walters State fell victim to two walk off losses on Friday evening, falling 8-7 and 11-10 to Gordon State.

With the losses, the Lady Senators fell to 4-4 on the season.

GAME ONE: Gordon State 8, No. 5 Walters State 7

In game one of the day, the Lady Senators led by three heading to the bottom of the seventh but gave up four runs and were walked off.

Lauren Ruehl led the way at the plate for Walters State, smacking a home run and driving in three runs. Allie Seritt hit a home run as well, while Alayna Ross and Addison Beech each had two hits. 

In the circle, Ruehl got the start and threw two innings. Ruehl gave up three runs, one earned, on three hits. Emma Myatt replaced Ruehl in the third and pitched the final 4.2 innings, allowing five runs, four earned, on six hits while striking out two. 

Gordon State got on the board first with a run in the bottom of the first inning, but Walters State quickly got the lead in the top of the second when Ruehl smashed a two-run home run over the fence in center. 

Gordon State answered back with two runs in the bottom of the second that gave them a 3-2 advantage, but Walters State scored two more in the top of the third to regain the lead. Those runs scored on a wild pitch and an RBI single by Ruehl that made it 4-3. 

That would be the score until the sixth, when Walters State added to their lead with three runs as Serrit hit a two-run home run and Olivia Neese grounded out but scored Imari Golden.

However, Gordon State got a run in the bottom of the sixth and four in the bottom of the seventh to take the win.

GAME TWO: Gordon State 11, No. 5 Walters State 10 (8 Innings) 

In game two, Walters State overcame a 9-4 deficit with five runs in the fifth and then took a 10-9 lead in the top of the eighth inning. Unfortunately, Gordon State scored two in the bottom of the eighth to walk things off. 

At the plate, Ross had three more hits, all doubles, while Randi Delong homered and drove in two runs. Nora Mack knocked in two runs, as well. 

In the circle, Ross got the start and threw two innings. Ross gave up seven runs on five hits and struck out three. Makayla Ramsey replaced Ross in the third and threw the final 5.2 innings, allowing three runs, all unearned, on four hits while striking out three.

Walters State came out hot to start game two with two runs in the top of the first on a Delong sacrifice fly and a passed ball that scored Ross. Gordon scored one in the bottom of the first to cut the lead in half, but the Lady Senators scored two more in the top of the second on a sacrifice bunt from Beech that scored Golden and a double steal that saw Mack cross home to make it 4-1.

However, Gordon scored six in the bottom of the second and two in the bottom of the third to grab a 9-4 advantage. That was the score until the fifth when Delong led off the inning with a solo homer. Ross then doubled and Serritt walked to bring up Golden, who doubled home a run to make it 9-6. It was 9-8 a batter later as Mack drove a two-RBI single into right. Gordon got out number two in the inning, but Kendal Mason tied the game at nine with an RBI single. 

The two teams remained deadlocked for the next two innings and went to extra innings. In the eighth, Walters State moved the ghost runner to third on a sacrifice bunt and Delong drove her in with a single to give the Lady Senators a 10-9 lead. In the bottom half of the inning, Ramsey got two quick outs but a walk and an error scored a run before another walk and an RBI single ended the game. 

Up Next:

Walters State and Gordon State will play two more times at Gordon State on Saturday. The two teams will play at 12 pm ET and 2 pm ET.