YORK, Neb. – York won the first game in extra innings, and the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes would hold off a late charge by the York Panthers to salvage a split on Saturday at the York Ballpark Complex.
In the opener, York took an early lead in the bottom of the first, before the game turned into a dual between the pitchers, Carmen Angulo (JR/Long Beach, Calif.) for the Coyotes and Kate Reyes for York.
Kiana Turner (SO/Quapaw, Okla.) singled and Sydney Brown (JR/Tucson, Ariz.) doubled ahead of a sacrifice fly by Bailey Rivas (FR/West Covina, Calif.) that tied the game in the top of the fourth inning.
The game remained tied the rest of the way, forcing extra innings.
In the top of the eighth, the Coyotes plated a run when Rivas reached on a fielder’s choice that allowed Jessica Vegely (SR/Mariposa, Calif.) to score, who reached on a fielder’s choice sacrifice bunt to start the inning. KWU led 2-1 at that point.
In the bottom of the eighth, York tied it again with a sacrifice fly, then won it with a 2-run homer by Briana Walter.
Turner had three hits for the Coyotes, and Brown had two. Rivas drove in two runs without a hit.
In the second game the Coyotes scored four runs in the first and two more in the second and another in the third to take an early 7-1 lead before York score three in the bottom of the third.
Lauren Blue (SR/Arlington, Texas) led off the game with a homer, and five batters later Miranda Guerrero (SO/Oxnard, Calif.) connected on a 2-run double that scored Vegely and Turner. Brianna McGinnis (JR/Tucson, Ariz.) then drove in a fourth run of the frame with a ground out.
A sacrifice fly by Turner and Blue scoring on a wild pitch accounted for the second inning runs for the Coyotes.
Paola Cordova (FR/El Paso, Texas) drove in the third inning run for the Coyotes with a single that plated Guerrero.
KWU added another run in the fourth when Brown hit into a double play, but Vegely was able to score after leading off the inning with a single. Blue drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the fifth to extend the KWU lead.
York got a run in the sixth then got three in the seventh, but their late charge was not enough.
Angulo got the win in the circle in the second game, throwing six innings. The Coyotes produced 15 hits, led by Vegely and Rivas with three each. Turner, Guerrero and McGinnis had two each.
The Coyotes are at Tabor on Wednesday before hosting Avila on Saturday at Salina South High School.