Ravens Softball earned a split with the No. 8 Central Methodist University Eagles at home Saturday.
The (RV) Ravens won the first game, 2-1 in extra innings, before falling 10-8 in the second game.
Game 1: Benedictine 2, CMU 1 - 8 innings
The Ravens won in walk-off fashion, 2-1, in Saturday's opener. Kaleigh Small got things going in the bottom of the eighth inning with a single to left field.
She was followed by walks from Rhiannon Martin and Amanda Waymire to load the bases, then Reagan Enright lifted a fly ball to deep center field, allowing Small to score the winning run on a sacrifice fly.
The win supported a strong outing from Bailey Selvage in the circle.
Selvage worked around leadoff doubles in the first and second innings, then pitched a perfect third inning to keep the Eagles off the board.
The Eagles loaded the bases in the fourth inning with a pair of singles sandwiching a walk and pop out, but again Selvage worked out of the jam. She induced a fly out that was too shallow to score a runner, then picked up a strikeout to get out of the bases loaded situation.
An error on the Eagles leadoff batter hurt the Ravens in the fifth inning as she came around to score the game's first run on a double, but Selvage worked around any further damage.
Martin leveled the score at 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth, leading off the inning with a solo home run to center field.
After allowing a leadoff single in the eighth inning, Selvage got a strikeout and then allowed another single. No matter, though, as Selvage induced a pop out and ground out to set the stage for the walk-off in the bottom half of the frame.
Selvage struck out 5 and gave up just 1 unearned run in the complete game win.
Game 2: CMU 10, Benedictine 8
The Ravens jumped all over the Eagles in the first inning of the second game, scoring 6 runs. Small reached on a fielder's choice, then moved to third after back-to-back singles from Martin and Waymire. Small scored when Enright reached on an error, then Megan Forsman singled home Martin and Waymire.
Lauren Gaitley ripped a hit down the right field line for a triple that scored Forsman and Enright, then Forsman scored on a single by Mattilyn Peters to make it 6-0.
The Eagles answered in the top of the second, plating 3 runs to cut the Ravens lead in half. Another 3 runs from CMU in the top of the third tied the score, 6-6.
The Ravens answered in the bottom of the third. Mattilyn Peters bunted for a hit and later scored on Alena Velilla's triple. Velilla then scored on a single by Small to make it 8-6.
The Eagles scored again in the top of the fourth, trimming the Ravens lead to 8-7.
CMU took their first lead of the game in the top of the sixth inning. After Lacey Foster gave up a leadoff runner, Selvage entered the game but was able to record just 1 out before 3 runs scored to put the Eagles up 10-8. Kaelyn Conrad entered the game was able to get the final 2 outs of the inning without allowing any further damage.
Neither team scored in the final frame, with the Eagles taking the 10-8 win. Selvage picked up the loss (7-4).
The Ravens (16-8, 3-1 Heart) will wait a week before hosting Culver-Stockton College at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 21.
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