SE Sweeps SWOSU on Day One of Series

DURANT, Okla. – Offense shone in game one while pitching stole the show in game two as Southeastern kept its Great American Conference record spotless with an 8-6 win over Southwestern Oklahoma State in their series opener on Friday, followed by a 2-0 victory in game two of the double-header at the Southeastern Softball Field.
 
The Savage Storm improve to 10-6 overall on the season and 6-0 in GAC play and stretch its current winning streak to seven games heading into the second half of its series against the Bulldogs with a twinbill slated for noon on Saturday.
 
Laramie Beal turned in a 3-for-4 outing with a pair of doubles and four RBI, while Destiny Riddle and Sydney Kramer added two hits apiece to help SE tally 12 hits in the game.
 
Beal led the way with four RBI, while Jessica Simmons, Jordyn James, Mykaela Wallace and Conner Harmon each added one.
 
Destiny Riddle, Kramer and Beal each scored twice.
 
Emily Cudd got the start and picked up her sixth win of the year after tossing 5.1 innings and allowing six runs, five earned, on nine hits with one strikeout.
 
Jessica Seay came on in relief and recorded her first save while striking out four of the seven batters she faces in 1.2 innings of work.
 
SWOSU took the lead in the top of the first, but Beal's first double in the bottom half of the inning would plate two for a 2-1 lead.
 
The Bulldogs found an immediate answer in the top of the second with Tori Hawk connecting on the first of her two homers, this one putting them in front 3-2.
 
The Storm would find its answer in the third inning, with Beal connecting on her second-consecutive two-run double to put Southeastern up 4-3.
 
That was not the end in the third as Wallace would single home Beal, followed by an RBI single by Harmon and an RBI double from Simmons to open up a 7-2 lead.
 
James would push the lead to 8-2 with an RBI single in the fourth that scored Beal.
 
The Storm would have to weather a rally trey as SWOSU picked up a run in the fifth and two more off Hawk's second home run of the day in the sixth to fashion the 8-6 final.
 
Seay would get the start in the circle in game two and turn in one of her best outings of the season, turning in her first complete game of the year without allowing a run and scattering six hits while striking out nine.  She used 103 pitches in the contest and nearly 75 percent of them were strikes.
 
Game two turned into a pitcher's duel as both teams mustered six hits each, with SE paced by two off the bat of Courtney Riddle.
 
Simmons, Destiny Riddle, Beal and Harmon each added a hit with Kramer and Beal driving in runs.
 
Beal put the Storm on the scoreboard with her second home run of the season, a solo shot giving SE a 1-0 lead after two innings.
 
That would hold till the fifth inning when Kramer doubled the score with an RBI groundout that plated a pinch-running Shaina Crites to make the score 2-0.
 
Seay would get into a little trouble in the seventh inning as SWOSU had two on with one out, but would get a fielder's choice ground out and close the game with a strikeout to preserve the 2-0 victory.