"It was a complete team win tonight", said head coach Amy Tudor. "Our circle was strong, our defense was great, and we had timely hitting and got runs down."
Katie Gardner had a five-strikeout, three-hit night in the circle, before Rylan Smith came in for relief and earned her second save of the season.
WKU 3, SAM HOUSTON 1
WKU plated two in the second inning off of a Sophie Weber double into right-center field, scoring Annie White and Morgan Sharpe who both singled in their at-bats. Weber is now tied with Taylor Sanders and Annie White with six doubles this season.
The Bearkats' lone run came in the top of the fourth inning from a shallow RBI single through the left side.
In the bottom half, Kendle White picked up the Hilltoppers' 71st two-out RBI on the year with a 3-1 shot over the left-center field wall for her first home run of the season.
Earning her eighth win on the year, Katie Gardner pitched 4.0 innings, giving up a run off of three hits while retiring five at the plate. Rylan Smith came in for relief in the fifth inning, striking out two and picking up the Tops' third save of the season.
TOP STORYLINES
- As both programs met for the first time tonight, WKU now leads the all-time series at 1-0.
- Brylee Hage was the lone Hilltopper with a multi-hit night at the plate, picking up singles in the second and fourth innings.
- Freshman Kendle White hit the Tops' 25th home run of the season and her first collegiate career homer of the year.
- As a whole, WKU is leading Conference USA with a .324 batting average and .977 fielding rate.
- TJ Webster leads the Tops with a .455 batting average, while Morgan Sharpe owns 44 hits on the season. Both lead CUSA in their category.
- Katie Gardner is operating with a 2.17 ERA to lead the WKU pitching staff, producing 69 strikeouts at the plate. Rylan Smith is next in line with a 2.53 ERA and 76 strikeouts.
- WKU and Sam Houston will play game two of the three-game series tomorrow, March 29 at WKU Softball Complex. First pitch is scheduled for 6 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.
