Southeastern Sweeps GAC Opening Day

ALVA, Okla. – Southeastern opened its Great American Conference schedule on Friday with a double-header sweep at Northwestern Oklahoma State in Alva, Okla., taking game one 9-1 before holding on for an 8-5 win in the nightcap.
 
The wins move the Savage Storm to 6-6 on the season overall and get them off to a 2-0 start in league play heading into the final two games of the series set for noon on Saturday.
 
The opener played out as a pitcher's duel through six innings until the Storm exploded for six runs in the top of the seventh to pull away for the 9-1 win.
 
Emily Cudd recorded a complete game, scattering four hits and allowing one unearned run while striking out two to move to 4-2 on the year.
 
Jessica Simmons led the offense with a 3-for-4 effort at the plate with three runs scored and a pair of stolen bases.
 
Laramie Beal added a pair of hits, while Kennedy Been, Mykaela Wallace, Keeshia Thompson and Conner Harmon each added hits.
 
Beal and Been drove in a pair of runs, while Destiny Riddle, Sydney Kramer and Thompson each had one RBI.
 
A Kramer groundout in the top of the first would score Simmons who led off the game with a double and moved to third on a Destiny Riddle sac bunt.
 
The lead doubled to 2-0 in the third when Simmons turned a leadoff single into a triple by stealing second and third back-to-back to enable her to score on Destiny Riddle's sac fly.
 
A Thompson double in the fourth would plate Been and stretch the advantage to 3-0.
 
NWOSU would get a run back in the sixth on an RBI double to make the score 3-1.
 
However, a Thompson walk to lead off the top of the seventh would begin to open the flood gates as Harmon followed with a walk which was followed by a Simmons single to load the bases.
 
Thompson scored when Destiny Riddle reached on an error and one batter later Kramer would draw a bases-loaded walk to move the lead to 5-1.
 
Beal followed with a two-run double and Been added a two-run single two batters later to bounce the lead up to 9-1 which would hold to be the final score.
 
In game two Jessica Seay picked up her second win of the year after tossing 4.0 innings and allowing a run on two hits with two K's.
 
Destiny Riddle tossed an inning in relief and was tagged for two runs on two hits, with Hunter Offill relieving her and allowing two more runs on four hits.
 
Cudd would come on to finish off the game and toss one inning, allowing one hit.
 
Thompson turned in a 3-for-4 outing at the plate in game two with an RBI, while Simmons added a pair of hits and RBI and three runs scored.
 
Five others would chip in a hit, while Destiny Riddle turned in a team-best three RBI, with Simmons, Cudd, Beal, Thompson and Harmon each driving in a run.
 
Simmons opened the game by channeling her inner Rickey Henderson and hit a true game leading off home run to left center for a 1-0 lead right out of the gate.
 
A Beal sac fly later in the inning would score Destiny Riddle and move the advantage to 2-0.
 
Riddle would do the drviign in the second inning when she connected on a three-run homer to left that also scored Simmons and Harmon and moved the lead to 5-0.
 
Harmon would get on the home run train in the top of the fourth with a solo shot to right-center and the lead would later move to 7-0 in the inning when Simmons scored on an RBI groundout by Cudd.
 
After Seay retired the first nine batters in order, NWOSU answered in the bottom of the fourth with a sac fly cutting into the Storm lead and making it 7-1.
 
The Rangers chipped away more in the sixth with a pair of runs to close to 7-3.
 
A Thompson double would score Beal in the top of the seventh to add an insurance run and make it 8-3, with NWOSU picking up a pair of runs in the bottom half of the final frame to make the final score 8-5.