Hailey Bennet (7IP, 9H, 4ER, 6BB, 10K) picked up the win in the circle in the opener and Mikenna Pattrin (6IP, 9H, 4ER, 1BB, 8K) was tagged with the loss.

Leading hitters for the Knights were Ireland Winter (3-3, 2B, 4RBI), Kaitlyn Sanstead (2-3, 2B, R) and Lexi Bright (1-3, 3B).

Brandon-Evansville was led by Kristen Kokett (2-3, R), Pattrin (2-3, R) and Haddey Zastrow (2-3, R, RBI).

“We started off strong in this game, but gave WCA too many chances late in the game to be able to finish it out,” said Kasi Sieling of the Chargers.  “West Central has some very strong hitters and we allowed them a few too many extra opportunities and they took advantage.  Mikenna threw a solid first game, but we just weren’t able to get the timely hits to bring runs in and provide her the run support we needed with 13 runners left on base.”

Game two was a back-and-forth battle.  The game was tied at 2-2 after five innings.  WCA scored three times in the top of the sixth and B-E responded with 3 in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game at 5-5.  Two runs in the top of the seventh gave the Knights a 7-5 lead, however, the Chargers scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to record the walk-off win and gain the split.

“This was a back and forth game from the beginning and the girls really had to dig deep and battle until the very end, which was great to see from them,” commented Coach Sieling. “Mikenna stepped up and threw another solid game after taking the loss in the first game of the doubleheader and Bailey was solid behind the plate all night.  Defensively, we had some miscues, but were able to work out of situations to keep ourselves in a good position throughout the game. Offensively, we saw contributions throughout our lineup and every girl showed confidence and discipline in the box.  In the bottom of the 7th we were down 7-5 with our 4-5-6 hitters up. Alena Shores led off the inning with a single, but was followed by 2 outs. With 2 outs Korrie Randt put the ball in play and reached on an error, which started to swing momentum in our favor. Maddie Otto laced a ball to right field to tie the game. With two outs Kaylee Bitzan and Kristen Kokett drew walks to load the bases for Bailey Schaefer. Bailey took no time and drove the first pitch of her at bat to center field to bring in the winning run.  I was extremely proud of the way the girls battled tonight and fought until the very end. It is challenging to come back from dropping the first game of a doubleheader, but they were able to stay focused and show their determination to come out with a win. This was a big conference doubleheader that we learned a lot in. We’ll rest over the weekend and get back to work tightening things up as we progress in the season.”

Leaders for the Chargers were Schaefer (3-5, 2 2B, 3RBI), Shores (1-3), Zastrow (1-4, R), Kerryn Lund (1-2, 2R), Randt (2-4, 2B, 2R, RBI), Otto (1-3, 2R) and Bitzan (1-2, R, RBI).

WCA was led by Bright (2-5, R), Winter (2-3, R) and Sanstead (2-4, RBI).