ST. CATHARINE, Ky. -- After two exciting finishes, the University of Pikeville softball team was able to secure a split at St. Catharine on Saturday, falling 8-7 in the opener before bouncing back to win by the same score in game two.

Brittany McKee made the Bears pay in game one with a two-run homer to help St. Catharine overcome a 7-6 deficit in the final inning, while Courtney Morgan drew a bases-loaded walk to push UPIKE in front 8-7 in the seventh inning of game two.

From there, the defense came through as Amber Murrell threw out a Patriot baserunner tagging up from second with two outs to bring the game to a close.

UPIKE is now 14-21 overall and 8-12 in Mid-South Conference play, while St. Catharine moves to 19-25 overall and 5-15 in conference play.

St. Catharine 8, UPIKE 7

Morgan did all she could to give UPIKE a chance, but it ended up not being enough to get past St Catharine after a seventh-inning home run brought the game to a walk-off end at  8-7.

Morgan rocked the Patriots with two home runs, driving in three RBIs with blasts in the second and seventh innings. Her last one gave UPIKE a 7-6 lead as Jillian Bohnert had reached on a walk in the previous at bat before stepping off the base paths for pinch runner Jordan Gentry.

St Catharine didn't take long to answer as it led off the bottom of the seventh with Carly Benz being hit by a pitch, followed by Brittany McKee delivering the game-winner with a shot over the fence.

McKee also got the win in the circle after 3 1/3 innings of relief, allowing two runs on three hits with two strikeouts.

The Patriots hit three home runs in the game, starting with Kelsey Gravens in the third inning and McKee in the fifth and seventh frames.

Lindsay Floyd took the loss after scattering 12 hits for eight runs in six innings with two strikeouts and a walk.

UPIKE claimed an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second on a solo blast from Morgan, and then another solo shot from Breana Pineda was part of a four-run fourth to make it a 5-1 Bear lead.

But after posting one run in the fourth, St Catharine added three in the fifth, one in the sixth, and then the game-deciding two runs off the bat of McKee in the seventh.

UPIKE 8, St. Catharine 7

Bohnert tallied two home runs to carry the Bears to an 8-7 win over St Catharine in the nightcap. The game was back-and-forth heading into the final inning, with seven lead changes throughout.

A seventh-inning walk drawn by Morgan scored Destiny Molden to break a 7-7 tie and give UPIKE the lead for good.

Alexandra Quill picked up the win in the circle, despite allowing seven runs over seven innings. She struck out three batters, walked five and scattered nine hits.

Bohnert, Mackenzie Summers and Logan Cline led UPIKE at the plate, combining for eight hits and four RBIs.

The Bears jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the top of the first when Cline singled and moved to third on a double by Murrell. Cline scored on a single by Morgan and Bohnert scored on Hollie Hinkle's RBI single.

St. Catharine responded with a run in the third, then took a 5-3 lead with a four-run fourth on four hits and three errors.

By the top of the sixth, the Patriots held a 6-4 lead, but UPIKE outscored them 4-1 over the final two innings to steal the win.

In the top of the sixth, Bohnert roped a two-run homer, then in the seventh Cline added an RBI single and Destiny Molden scored the go-ahead run after Morgan's bases-loaded walk.

St. Catharine had runners on first and second with one out in the bottom of the inning when Jennifer Ortega flew out to center and Murrell threw out Taylor Lewis returning to base after an attempted tag up to end it.

Up Next

UPIKE and St. Catharine wrap up the weekend series at Noon ET on Sunday in St. Catharine.

-UPIKE-