Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 The Tiger softball team played a conference doubleheader at Washburn in Topeka, Kan., on Tuesday (Apr. 5). The Tigers swept the pair of games by scores of 8-3 and 4-2. Malinee Powell had a huge offensive day, belting three home runs in the doubleheader. Fort Hays State is now 17-15 overall and 3-7 in the MIAA. Washburn dropped to 10-20 overall and 1-7 in the MIAA.

Game 1: FHSU 8, Washburn 3

Box Score

The Tigers jumped out to a 7-2 lead early with three runs in the first and four in the second. Washburn scored once in the third to cut the lead to 7-3, but the Tigers held the Lady Blues scoreless the rest of the way.

A pair of singles to start the game by Sara Tani and Maddie Holub triggered a three-run first inning. Danie Brinkmann followed with a 2-RBI double, then she later scored on a throwing error.

Washburn countered with two runs in the bottom of the first on an Alex Zordel home run.

A pair of two-run home runs in the second by Taylor Nelson and Malinee Powell plated four more runs and gave the Tigers the cushion they needed for the win.

Washburn had the bases loaded in the third, but scored only one run out of the situation. Tiger pitcher Maddie Holub buckled down from the fourth inning on, retiring 10 straight until she hit a batter in the seventh. Holub tied her season high for strikeouts with 10, recording at least one in every inning but the seventh. She allowed four hits and five walks, moving to 8-5 on the season.

Powell blasted her second home run of the game in the seventh, a solo shot, pushing the score to the eventual final of 8-3.

Game 2: FHSU 4, Washburn 2

Box Score

Washburn jumped out to an early 1-0 lead with a run in the first, but FHSU countered with one in the second and two in the third to take a 3-1 lead. Adriana Wortley tied the game in the second with an RBI single. Then Malinee Powell blasted her third home run of the day in the third, a two-run shot, to give FHSU the lead.

Fort Hays State pushed its lead to 4-1 in the fifth on a two-out Britney Workman single.

Kayla Rupa settled in after allowing three hits in the first inning. She scattered just two hits over the next four innings, retiring eight straight from the end of the third to the beginning of the sixth.

She would run into a bases loaded jam in the sixth with two outs, but allowed just one run on a single before getting a groundout to end the inning. She worked around a leadoff hit and a hit batter in the seventh to move to 9-10 on the season. Rupa allowed nine hits and no walks to go with her eight strikeouts.