HESSTON, Kan. — The Hesston College softball team hosted Bethel College on Wednesday afternoon in a doubleheader, falling 21-3 in game one and 3-1 in extra innings in game two.
Game 1 – Bethel 21, Hesston 3
In the opener, Bethel broke through in the third inning, capitalizing on a hit batter, a walk and a key three-run double to take a 5-0 lead. The Threshers added four more runs in the fifth behind a two-run double and a pair of RBI singles to stretch the margin to 9-0.
Hesston responded in the bottom of the fifth. After Skye Gomez reached on an error and Ciara Mendez singled, A. Newlin delivered a triple to left field, driving in two runs. Chloe Merjil followed with an RBI groundout to score Alexis Newlin and cut the deficit to 9-3.
Bethel answered with a run in the sixth and then erupted for 11 runs in the seventh, stringing together multiple hits and taking advantage of defensive miscues to pull away for the 21-3 final.
Newlin led the Larks offensively in game one, going 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBIs. Gomez and Mendez each recorded two hits, while Merjil added an RBI. Hesston totaled nine hits in the contest.
Game 2 – Bethel 3, Hesston 1 (8 innings)
In game two, the Larks were locked in a pitchers’ duel. Bethel scored its first run in the third inning after an error allowed a run to cross, but B. Symons kept the Threshers in check for the remainder of her seven innings in the circle. Symons allowed just one unearned run on five hits while striking out six.
Hesston tied the game in the bottom of the seventh. G. Pantoja singled to left center and later scored on a pair of Bethel errors to knot the score at 1-1 and force extra innings.
In the eighth, Bethel capitalized on the international tiebreaker rule. A leadoff single brought in the placed runner, and another Hesston error allowed a second run to score, giving the Threshers a 3-1 advantage.
The Larks were unable to respond in the bottom half, finishing game two with five hits. Gabriella Pantoja, Gomez, Mendez and Corlyn McGaha each recorded hits, while Hesston battled defensively throughout the tight contest.
