Tritons go 2-2 in Arkansas Tournament

The University of Missouri-St. Louis women’s softball team finished up the February portion of its schedule by splitting the four games it played at a tournament in Arkansas two weekends ago.

The Tritons left campus intending to play six games at Henderson State University’s Hot Springs Classic in Arkadelphia, Ark., but a scheduling snafu prevented UM-St. Louis from playing its Friday games, leaving the team with only doubleheaders to play on Saturday and Sunday.

And on both those days, the same thing happened: the Tritons won one and they lost one.

The first game was on Saturday, Feb. 27, against Ouachita Baptist. UM-St. Louis led 3-2 in the fifth, but OBU scored seven runs in its final two at-bats to snatch away a 9-4 victory.

The second game that day though went much better for the Tritons. UM-St. Louis pounded out 16 hits in a 12-2 victory over Henderson State.

Katie Bartlett, senior, biology, who was recently named the Great Lakes Valley Conference’s Player of the Week and National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s National Player of the Week, had another fantastic day at the plate for the Tritons.

Not only did she blast a home run in the game-one loss against Ouachita Baptist, Bartlett smoked her third home run of the season against Henderson State, a fifth-inning grand slam, to give UM-St. Louis the lead.

The senior catcher finished the day 2-for-4 at the plate, with four RBIs, and two runs scored. Teammates Haleigh Jenkins, freshman, undecided, and Meaghan Bauer, senior, business, had three hits apiece as well, with Jenkins blasting her first collegiate home run in the second inning.

On Sunday, Feb. 28, the Tritons reversed order with the wins and losses, by winning the first game and losing the nightcap.

Game one was against Arkansas Tech, with UM-St. Louis winning 10-3 despite being outhit 16-10. Megan Brussman, senior, business administration, was the hitting star for the Tritons. The centerfielder led off the game for the Tritons with her first home run since her freshman year and had three RBIs.

Bartlett had two more hits for the Tritons, including her team-leading fourth home run of the season, as UM-St. Louis jumped all over the Golden Suns pitching staff.

In the final game of the weekend, Leslie Davis, freshman, psychology, blasted a two-run homer in the first inning for the Tritons, but it was not enough to hold off the University of Arkansas-Monticello, which won the game 13-2.

Davis, who had won her first three starts for UM-St. Louis, suffered her first loss, as UAM teed off for 14 hits in the final game of the tournament.

UM-St. Louis will head into March with a 5-3 record, and will look to improve on that this Thursday, March 11, when it travels to Bolivar, Mo., to play a doubleheader against Southwest Baptist University.

The Tritons will then head to Pittsburg, Kan., to play in a tournament at Pittsburg State University on Friday and Saturday, March 12 and 13.

Next week, UM-St. Louis will make its much anticipated home debut with mid-week doubleheaders against nonconference foes Truman State and Central Missouri State.

The Truman State games are scheduled to start at 3 p.m., on Tuesday, March 16, at the UM-St. Louis Softball Field. The following day, Wednesday, March 17, the Tritons will host its doubleheader against Central Missouri State at 2 p.m.