27 Feb 2023 Bears end weekend with victory

CONWAY — Central Arkansas closed the Michelle Short Memorial Classic with a hard-fought, 7-6 win over South Dakota State last Sunday, Feb. 26. The lead bounced back and forth throughout the afternoon, finally staying with the Bears after a sixth inning double put the home team in front for good.

The win improves Central Arkansas to 11-2 on the season, now through three of the five scheduled tournaments in 2023. Kayla Beaver picked up her sixth win of the year against SDSU, tossing 5.1 innings and striking out four.

South Dakota State crossed home plate first on Sunday, scoring two runs on a home run in the top of the first. Now 13 games in, it marked the first home run allowed by the Bear pitching corps this season. Central Arkansas would match the two in the home half of the first, and raise the bar to four runs. Jenna Wildeman got on base with a bunt single, stealing second for sixth swipe of the year to reach second. Already in scoring position, Madi Young drove Wildeman in with a single down the left field line.

Young would get moved to second on the next at bat, and then would score with two outs off the bat of a home run by Morgan Nelson. It marked the first of the season for Nelson, who hit 11 last year. Mary Kate Brown knocked a double to keep the offense moving. Two batters later, Kylie Griffin sent her home on an infield single.

But the Jackrabbits didn’t go quietly, tying the game in the second inning on back-to-back singles with runners in scoring position. SDSU took the lead back in the third, piecing together four straight plate appearances that moved runners, starting with a walk and ending with a sacrifice fly. After the first burst of offense, though, the Bears were stuck in the mud for the middle of the game, finding it difficult to move runners. Central Arkansas left 11 runners on base against the Jackrabbits.

The score was brought back to even in the bottom of the fourth, as Young opened with a walk. Engelkes, bringing a powerful bat to the cleanup spot, drove Young in with a double to the wall, notching the game at five runs apiece. It was immediately answered in the top of the fifth, however; the Jackrabbits again moved runners with nickel-and-dime-type plays to claim a 6-5 advantage.

Central Arkansas entered the home half of the sixth knowing that if there was a move to be made, it was now. Cycling through the lineup, Young again led off an inning with a walk, and was promptly followed by a walk for Engelkes. Nelson reached on a fielder’s choice, eliminating Young, and the Bears responded by putting in Bella Barnes and Ally Callahan as pinch runners, pushing a ton of chips into the pot to get some runs across. Mary Kate Brown walked, loading the bases, and SDSU was able to get an out on the next at bat, the second of the inning.

To the plate came Kylie Griffin, already with an RBI in the game and a home run on her ledger from the day before. After watching a pitch go by for a ball, Griffin planted and crushed the next one to right field, hitting the fence just inches from her second home run of the weekend. Instead, the Bears settled for a two-RBI double, taking the lead for the final time on Sunday. The Jackrabbits would get a runner to third in the top of the seventh, but a line drive to first base ended the game, closing out the tournament with a win for the Bears.

The Bears will host the Adam Brown Shamrock Classic, playing four games this weekend.