WITCHITA, Kan. – The No. 19 UCF softball team were victorious in game two of the team's three game series with Wichita State, winning 3-1 in extra innings thanks to a Kennedy Searcy two-RBI single in the eighth. The victory has secured the Knights with at least a share of the American Athletic Conference title.
"Shannon put us up early with her homer, and then Kama was just an artist out there today," said head coach Cindy Ball-Malone. "The team followed them. That eighth inning rally is what I remember our offense being like, just not worrying about anything and having a 'so what?' mindset."
Like last night, UCF was first on the scoreboard, plating the first run of the game in the top of the second inning. Shannon Doherty snapped her homerless streak with a leadoff shot way over the left field wall to put the Knights up 1-0. Doherty hadn't homered in over a month, going yard for the first time since Mar. 26 against South Florida.
Wichita State tied the game on a groundout in the top of the third. The bases were loaded for Zoe Jones, who rolled over on one to third base and was thrown out on the play but pushed across the run to make it 1-1.
The Knights looked to take a late lead in the top of the seventh as Jada Cody singled to begin the inning. She advanced to second on a wild pitch and then to third on a Doherty groundout. Ashleigh Griffin laid down a bunt as UCF tried to get the run across on the squeeze, but it was spoiled by the Shockers as Cody was cut down at the plate. Johneisha Rowe pinch ran for Griffin and proceeded to steal second on the next pitch but eventually was stranded there.
Kama Woodall was brilliant in the circle today after seeing Shockers hitters go 6-for-6 against her last night. She got the first two batters in the bottom of the seventh out via a fly out and strikeout. With two down, Wichita State was able to get a runner aboard, but Woodall slammed the door shut with another strikeout to force extra innings.
Justene Molina smacked a single to left to get things going in the top of the eighth inning. Micaela Macario was up next and hit a grounder in the infield, where Wichita State tried to erase Molina at second. The throw was late and both Molina and Macario were on for the top of the lineup. Allyse Volpe also beat one into the ground to the Shockers' middle infield, who tried to get Macario out at second but chalked up an error in doing so. The bases were now loaded for Searcy, who had gone 0-for-3 to this point in the ballgame. She swung at the first pitch she saw and blew it past Wichita State's diving second baseman, allowing Molina and Macario to score.
Woodall faced the minimum in the bottom of the eighth, starting the inning off with a ground ball out to second base. She walked the next batter but got the following Shocker to roll one back to her. Woodall wheeled to second for one out, Molina finished off the double play to Doherty to seal the deal. The Knights improved to 5-0 in extra innings with the win and have outscored their opponents 12-1 when the game goes beyond seven frames.
Woodall tied a career-high in strikeouts with eight and set a new season high in innings pitched with eight innings of work. It's the second time that Woodall has recorded eight strikeouts this season, the last time coming against her former team, ECU, back on Apr. 15.
Saturday's victory marks one of just five times this season that Wichita State has been held to one run or less.
The win on Saturday guarantees the Knights at least a share of the conference title, their first crown since 2015. The 2015 squad won both the regular season and conference tournament, finishing the year 50-9.
Sunday's contest will decide the top seed in the American Athletic Conference tournament. The majority of the conference is all situated seeding wise, with South Florida locked into the three slot, Houston at four and Tulsa at five. ECU and Memphis are tied at 2-15 at the bottom of the conference, needing Sunday's results to determine their seeding. ECU holds the tiebreaker over Memphis, taking two of three games in their series this season. The Knights have been the top seed in The American tournament twice after winning the regular season in the 2014 and 2015 seasons.
UP NEXT
Sunday's rubber match has a lot on the line for both sides. UCF will be going for the outright conference championship while Wichita State will be looking to grab the series victory and a share of the title. The winner of the ballgame will earn the top seed in the conference tournament beginning on Thursday, earning a bye into the semifinals. First pitch tomorrow takes place at 1 p.m. ET.
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