(RV) Baker Softball Splits Regular-Season Finale at MNU

OLATHE, Kan. - With projected inclement weather moving the series up a few days, (RV) Baker softball split its midweek doubleheader at MidAmerica Nazarene yesterday with a 4-2 victory in game one before falling on a Pioneers walk-off in the nightcap of the regular-season finale.

The Wildcats outlasted the Pioneers in game one with a pair of two-run innings securing BU's ninth straight win before the hosts took game two on a 4-3 walk-off to split the rivalry series.

Game 1 - BU 4, MNU 2
In Wednesday's opener, a two-run single from Riley Phillips in the top of the fifth turned out to be the game-winning hit as the Wildcats held off MNU to come away with a 4-2 victory.

BU took its first two-run lead of the game in the top of the second with back-to-back RBI via a sac fly from Madi Ball and an RBI single from Rilee Bell that put the Wildcats on top, 2-0.

Sydney Erlandson led off the fifth with a single and pinch-runner Sydney Kill eventually moved all the way over to third after stealing the bag on Mary Grace Hess' walk. With two down in the inning, Phillips smacked a hard-hit ball to the MNU second baseman that ricocheted off her chest and allowed enough time for both Kill and Hess to race home and make it a 4-0 lead for BU.

In the circle, Kira Baker notched her 14th complete game of the spring after tossing all seven innings and being responsible for just one of MNU's runs in the bottom of the fifth. She struck out four straight hitters at one point and finished with a total of seven to earn her 16th victory of 2024.

Game 2 - MNU 4, BU 3
Taking a two-run lead for the second time in Olathe, the Wildcats saw their nine-game winning streak come to a halt as a walk-off hit from the Pioneers spoiled the regular-season finale for BU.

After MNU plated a run in the bottom of the first, Baker pulled ahead with a three-run top of the fourth that was kickstarted by an incredible 14-pitch at-bat from Phillips that ended as a well-deserved base knock for the junior shortstop. Ball followed with a double and then Phillips scored on the next play to tie things at 1-1.

Later in the fourth, Bell drove in Ball with a sac fly RBI before Taryn Hull delivered a pinch-hit single to make it a 3-1 ballgame heading into the late stages of the game.

The Pioneers scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth to bring things to a 3-3 tie before a single up the middle with two outs brought the game-winning run across for MNU.

Phillips and Reese Curry, who made a couple diving catches in right field after coming in for Hess in the first inning, each had a pair of hits in the game with Phillips finishing off a 5-for-6 day at the plate for her 14th multi-hit outing of the spring.

Winning nine of their final 10 games, the Wildcats closed out a 2024 regular season that saw them go 32-12 overall and eclipse the 30-win mark of the second straight year.

Baker, currently, sits in third place in the Heart standings with a 17-7 record and will await the final seeding for the conference tournament after the rest of the league wraps up play this upcoming weekend.

The 2024 Heart Softball Conference Championship will be hosted by Mount Mercy this year on May 2-5 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

#BakerBuildsChampions