Loper Athletics
KEARNEY – Junior center fielder Eden McNally went 4 for 4 with two runs scored and senior left fielder Carly Dembowski was 2 for 4 with four RBI’s to help Nebraska-Kearney hold off Newman, 11-7, in game two of a double header Friday afternoon at Patriot Park.
The Jets took game one on the strength of a 10-run fourth inning, 10-2. The game ended when a Loper was thrown out a home in the bottom of the fifth; a video review upheld the call which was a center field to catcher double play.
UNK (18-25, 6-14) and Newman (17-19, 5-15) were both looking to make a move on Fort Hays State this weekend for the MIAA’s 10th and final tourney spot. However, the Tigers (23-21, 7-13) upset sixth-ranked Central Oklahoma in game two today, 2-1 (8 innings).
In the nightcap, McNally (Castle Rock, Colo.) had four singles as part of a 13-hit Blue & Gold attack. The Lopers scored three in the first, three in the third and three more in the sixth. However, NU almost tied things up at eight in the sixth with two runs in and the bases loaded with no outs. But the rally was halted thanks to a rare 4-5 double play as second baseman Rylyn Nelson (Sterling, Colo.) made a diving catch in center and threw to third for an out as a Jet failed to tag up.
Dembowski (Lincoln North Star) had a two-run double run in the third with junior DP Addy Deal (Ft. Collins, Colo.) going 3 for 4 with two RBI’s right behind her in the order. In the circle, freshman Daniella Morillas (Newcastle, Calif.) improved to 10-10 with sophomore Madeline Janssen (Earlham, Ia.) earning her fourth save thanks to two scoreless innings.
Newman’s big fourth inning in the first game featured four walks, several bleeders and two fielder’s choices where UNK was late on deciding where to go with the ball. Senior Jackie Gold threw a complete game five hitter with all nine Jets having at least one RBI.
Nelson (1 for 1, one RBI & two walks) paced UNK.
