BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - The Middle Tennessee softball team dropped a heartbreaking 3-1 decision to rival Western Kentucky on Thursday. MT falls to 19-25 overall, 5-14 in SBC play. The Hilltoppers advance to 27-23, 6-13 in conference.
In the loss, the Blue Raiders tallied nine hits and two errors. They left 13 runners on base. Western Kentucky's three runs came off 11 hits as the team gave up two errors and left nine on base.
Lindsey Vander Lugt pitched all six innings, allowing two earned runs one walk. She struck out three batters and falls to 17-15 on the season with a 2.58 overall ERA and 167 strikeouts.
Corrie Abel wasted no time extending her current hitting streak to 14 games in the first inning, when she smacked a single through the left side of the infield on the first pitch of the game. The team was unable to bring her home and the side ended 0-0.
WKU got on the board first in the third, as Kelsey McCauley singled up the middle to score Brooke Reed from second making the score 1-0.
Lindsay Antone led off the fifth with a triple to right field for the Hilltoppers. She was driven home by McCauley for her second RBI of the game. McCauley would later score to extend the lead to 3-0 at the end of five.
In the sixth, Abel led off with a single before Caitlin McLure reached on a fielder's choice. McLure would be pushed second. She then stole third, but was put out at home on the play as she attempted come store on an errant thrower by the WKU catcher.
Natalie Ysais scored the first MT run in the seventh going from third on a Kaycee Popham single. The game would end 3-1.
Middle Tennessee will travel to FAU this weekend in a do or die conference series. Saturday's doubleheader will begin at 6 p.m. EST with the finale starting at noon on Sunday. Full results and coverage will be available on GoBlueRaiders.com.
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