GAME ONE BOX SCORE

GAME TWO BOX SCORE

Round Rock, Texas – Megann Lewis and Sarah Shurbet each hurled a four-hit shutout in leading Hardin-Simmons to a doubleheader sweep of Concordia in American Southwest Conference softball action on Friday, April 1 at Old Settler's Park. The Cowgirls, who won by scores of 7-0 and 5-0, took three out of four games from the Tornados in the two-day battle between two of the top three teams in the ASC West Division.

Hardin Simmons (17-11, ASC 11-1), which was dealt its first conference loss of the season by Concordia for the second straight season in yesterday's opener, jumped out to a quick two-run lead in the first game when Taylor Namey went yard to left after Blair Wallace drew a two-out walk.

Concordia, which was faced with a five-run deficit in the first inning of yesterday's opener before rallying to win in walk-off fashion, once again had chances to get on the board and chip away at the deficit. Lauren Vansickle doubled down the right field line with two down in the third inning, but Vicky Recek grounded out on the next play.

After the Cowgirls scored one more run in the top of the fourth on a Tornado error, the hosts had Jessica Rattan at third with another opportunity to get on the board with two down. Meghan Ferrell, however, struck out to end that threat.

Following an RBI double by Shelby McIntyre and a sacrifice fly by Amy Meyer, Namey was able to give the Cowgirls all the insurance they needed by clubbing her second two-run homer of the game over the fence in left. The Tornados got singles from Rattan and Alex Smith in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively, but Lewis was able to get out of each minor jam to seal the victory.

Concordia's Kat Moreno fell to 9-6 after being tagged with the loss. She surrendered seven hits and four runs, including three earned, over 4.1 innings of work. The sophomore also registered three strikeouts. Hardin Simmons' Lewis allowed only four hits and fanned six hitters to pick up her fourth shutout of the year.

Hardin-Simmons batted around in the second inning and scored three times to give itself an early lead in the nightcap. Kelsey Cogdell, Jodi Hierholzer and Meyer each drove in a run during the stretch.

After Mac Clay rocketed a two-run homer to left center to extend the Cowgirl lead to five, the Tornados once again put themselves in a position to get back into the game in the bottom of the fifth. Recek came through with a two-out double after Vansickle was issued a walk on the previous play, placing two runners in scoring position for Jordan Berry. But the freshman unfortunately grounded out to Meyer at short to end the frame. Shurbet retired the side in the last two innings to earn the clean sheet.

Concordia's Teylor Schiefelbein dropped to 10-4 on the year in the losing effort. She gave up seven hits and five runs, which were all earned, while posting one strikeout. Shurbet went the distance and earned her second shutout in as many days against the Tornados and third of the season. She struck out four and issued two walks.

Concordia wraps up its six-game homestand when it hosts Houston-Victoria, a nationally-ranked NAIA school, on Tuesday, April 5 at 4 p.m.
-agate-
Hardin-Simmons                                     200      113     0     7    12   1
Concordia                                                  000      000     0     0     4    1
Hardin-Simmons: Megann Lewis and Taylor Namey.
Concordia: Kat Moreno and Alex Smith.

Hardin-Simmons (17-11, ASC 11-1)     030     020     0     5     7     0
Concordia (20-10, ASC 11-5)                  000     000     0     0     4     1
     Hardin-Simmons: Sarah Shurbet and Taylor Namey.
     Concordia: Tayler Schiefelbein and Alex Smith.