BLUEFIELD, Va. -- After a tough game in the first matchup of Tuesday's doubleheader, UPIKE made sure it was a fun ride back home after a dominant second game.
Game 1
One brutal inning came back to bite the Bears in the afternoon's first game, a 12-4 loss.
Through the first few innings, it appeared it would be a offensive explosion from both teams. UPIKE scored two runs in the first inning, the former of which was on a double steal where Shelbi Knauer stole home after MacKenzie Pawlak stole second. Two batters later, Kelsey White drove home Pawlak with a RBI single.
However, Bluefield bounced right back with two runs in the bottom half of the inning. UPIKE promptly took the lead back, scoring one run each in the second and third. Haley Karr hit a double in the second and later scored on a Knauer RBI groundout; then, Pawlak scored in the third on another double steal.
Bluefield came back with a haymaker in the bottom of the third, scoring seven runs on five hits to give the Rams a 9-4 lead. The outburst chased Megan Claypoole from the game, giving way for Brooke Layne. Claypoole picked up her third straight loss after starting the season 9-1.
The Rams scored three more times in the fourth and fifth innings to enact the eight-run rule in the fifth to end the game.
Game 2
UPIKE returned the favor and then some in the second game, a 21-1 beatdown.
The offensive explosion is the Bears' second 20-run game this season (vs. Silver Lake, Mar. 13), and the fourth this decade.
Pikeville didn't waste any time getting started offensively, with each of the first five batters reaching base. The first four of those runners also came around to score. Haley Osborne, White and Karr all had RBI's in the frame.
That same process repeated itself with a four-run second inning. But the second inning was more explosive, complete with a pair of triples from Jordan Gentry and Elizabeth Hickey. Hickey's triple also brought in two runs and Karr followed with another RBI hit.
The Bears then combined those efforts with an eight-run third inning. Thirteen total batters came to the plate in the inning, which included six hits, two walks, an error, and a hit batter.
Every starter recorded a hit in the game. White had three hits, Knauer had four, and Osborne went a perfect 5-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs in the game.
Meanwhile, Hannah Skaggs was dealing, carrying a perfect game into the fourth. The lone blemish on Skaggs' line came in the fourth where Bluefield was able to get four consecutive hits, the first of which was a home run. But Skaggs was able to keep the extra runs from scoring.
Pikeville added five more runs in the fifth, started with a three-run home run from Gentry, her second of the season.
UP NEXT
The Bears will have a couple days off before facing another tough conference test, a four-game set against No. 13 Campbellsville on Friday and Saturday.
-UPIKE-
