Racers Take Game One, Fall in 16 Innings to Split Friday Doubleheader With Tennessee State

Friday, March 26

Murray, Ky.

3 P.M.

Murray State

13-14, 10-2

Tennessee State

5-15, 1-11

Tennessee State

Murray State

Photo by: Dave Winder-Murray State Athletics

Racers Take Game One, Fall in 16 Innings to Split Friday Doubleheader With Tennessee State

3/27/2021 3:21:00 AM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score (Game 1)Box Score (Game 2)

A 3-1 Racer victory preceded a 2-1 defeat in 16-inning marathon at Racer Field

Murray State softball continued its six-game homestand with a doubleheader against Tennessee State that served as the first two contests in a three-game weekend series with the Tigers. The Racers split the day, earning a 3-1 victory in game one before dropping a 16-inning affair by a score of 2-1 in the nightcap at Racer Field in Murray, Ky.

Game 1 – Murray State 3, Tennessee State 1

The Racers continued their recent trend of strong starts in the first game of the day, marching out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning when Sierra Gilmore and Lindsey Carroll drove in Racer runs in consecutive at-bats to give Murray State a two-run cushion in the opening frame.

After an Ivory Jones solo home run for Tennessee State led off the second to cut the deficit in half, Taylor Makowsky would find her groove in the circle for the Racers as she retired the side in order over the third and fourth innings.

The Racer offense saw a big spark in the home half of the fourth when Logan Braundmeier laced a two-out triple to center field. She would come around to score in the next at-bat when Jensen Striegel reached on a throwing error by the third baseman as the Racers widened the margin to 3-1 through four complete.

After the Tigers put runners on first and second with just one out in the fifth, Jenna Veber took over the pitching duties for the Racers as the sophomore pitched out of the jam to protect the Racer lead through five innings of action.

The Oswego, Illinois native went on to make quick work of the Tigers in the sixth and seventh frames as she retired the final eight batters of the contest to collect her fourth save of the season.

Makowsky improved to 4-1 on the season behind a 4.1 inning shift that featured four strikeouts and just a single earned run.

For Veber, she fanned five batters over 2.2 shutout innings, facing the minimum batters as she refused to allow a single walk in the relief appearance.

The three Racer runs came on eight hits, with Logan Braundmeier (2-3, 2 R), Sierra Gilmore (2-3, RBI), and Lindsey Carroll (2-3, RBI) each posting a two-hit performance in the victory.

Game 2 – Tennessee State 2, Murray State 1 (16 inn.)

The second game of the day would turn out to be unlike any game in program history as the definition of a pitchers' duel needed 16 innings to determine a winner.

Hannah James was in total control in the circle from her first pitch of the contest as the junior from Nicholasville, Kentucky faced just one batter over the minimum while striking out four through the first four innings of action to open the ballgame.

The Racers would put a runner in scoring position with just one out in both the fifth and sixth innings, but were unable to push across the game's first run as the ballgame remained scoreless through six complete.

After a 1-2-3 inning from the Tigers in the seventh, Chloe Jacque gave the Racers a base runner with two outs in the home half when she reached on an error by the Tiger shortstop, but the game would head to extras as MSU couldn't find a breakthrough.

With both starting pitchers still dealing in James and TSU's Francys King, the Racers and Tigers managed just three combined base runners over the next three frames as the deadlock remained intact through ten innings of action.

After James recorded the first out of the 11^th, Jenna Veber took over the pitching duties and struck out the first two batters she faced to keep the Tigers scoreless through the 11^th.

The Racers had a chance to win it in the 12^th when Alie Kennedy reached second base with two outs after she singled and then advanced 60 feet on a Chloe Jacque bunt, but King once again worked out of trouble to send the game to the 13^th.

Neither side collected a hit in the 13^th, and it would be Tennessee State who finally plated the game's first run in controversial fashion in the visiting half of the 14^th when the Racers failed to make a play on a routine ground ball off the bat of Bri Vire with runners on second and third. Anayah Baker-Rowell, who was running at second base, ran into a tag on her way to third after the bobbled ground ball for the third out of the inning, but it was deemed that M'Lei Woodard crossed the plate from third before the tag was applied to Baker-Rowell. Since no force play was intact, the timing of the out meant the run scored and the Tigers captured a 1-0 advantage through their half of the 14^th frame.

Murray State would show its resilience in the bottom half, though, putting themselves in a position to tie the game when Lexi Jones sparked the Racers with a lead-off double to center field. She would come around to score on an Alie Kennedy sacrifice fly to right as the game was level once again at the conclusion of the 14^th.

After a scoreless 15^th, the Tigers scratched another across in the 16^th by way of a Baker-Rowell RBI triple that scored Renae Spears.

The Racers went down in order in the bottom half as they came up short in a marathon of a ballgame – falling to the Tigers by a score of 2-1 after 16 innings.

Hannah James set a new Murray State single-game record for innings pitched as she dealt 10.1 scoreless frames, striking out seven while allowing just three hits without issuing a single walk in the outing.

Veber would be tagged with the loss, striking out six over 5.2 innings of work while allowing just one earned run and also not issuing a single walk.

TSU's King pitched all 16 innings for the Tigers.

The 16 innings played marked the longest game in Murray State history, and also served as the longest contest in the OVC dating back to at least 2013. The one-of-a-kind competition is also the longest game of the season in NCAA Division-I, outlasting a 15-inning contest between Wisconsin and Ohio State on March 11^th.

The Racers featured 18 different players in the ballgame, with Jensen Striegel and Lexi Jones each collecting two hits apiece to lead the way offensively. Striegel's two stolen bases in the contest also meant a significant milestone for the senior out of Floyds Knobs, Indiana as she passed Jenna Bradley (38) and Jessica Twaddle (39) to move into fourth on Murray State's all-time stolen bases list with 40 in a Racer uniform.

The Racers will try to win the series against the Tigers when they return to action on Saturday with a single game beginning at noon.