Katie Gardner pitched her fourth complete-game shutout of the season, working through five innings and dealing four strikeouts at the plate.
WKU 8, FIU 0 [5inn.]
In the bottom of the first inning, Cheyanne Sales drew a bases-loaded walk followed up by Randi Drinnon's first RBI of the night that was a single through the left side.
Drinnon picked up another run across the plate in the third frame, sending Sales home from a double off the wall in left field.
The Panthers went through two pitching changes and walked the first three batters to load the bases in the bottom of the fifth. Drinnon drilled the 1-1 pitch over the left field fence for her first home run of the season and first career grand slam to set the game at 7-0, in favor of the Red and White.
After the bases were cleared, Annie White hit the first double of her young career into left-center field and advanced to third base on a Panther error. Brylee Hage would walk-off the ballgame with a fast single through the right side and finalized the run-rule, 8-0.
Katie Gardner got her 12th start of the season in the circle and did not give up a run off of four hits and two walks. The right-hander retired four at the plate in her 10th career complete-game shutout.
TOP STORYLINES
- WKU now hits 40 all-time wins over FIU, taking the series, 40-36.
- Randi Drinnon hit her seventh career home run in the ballgame, earning her first career grand slam.
- Drinnon picked up a career-high six RBIs and went 3-for-3 on the evening, along with Annie White.
- Brylee Hage, TJ Webster, and Cheyanne Sales also picked up hits for the Red and White.
- As a whole, WKU is leading Conference USA with a .322 batting average.
- Morgan Sharpe continues to lead the Tops with a .475 batting average and 38 hits.
- Katie Gardner is now operating with a 1.38 ERA to lead the WKU pitching staff, producing 56 strikeouts at the plate. Rylan Smith is next in line with a 2.16 ERA and 51 strikeouts.
- The Tops and Panthers will be back at the WKU Softball Complex for game two tomorrow, March 16. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT.
How to Follow Hilltopper Softball: For complete information on WKU Softball, follow the team on X at @WKUSoftball, Instagram @WKU_Softball, and Facebook/WKUSoftball.
