MELBOURNE, Fla. — The Ave Maria Softball team finished their stay on the Space Coast Friday as they took on two nationally recognized teams in the #15 Missouri Baptist Spartans and the RV Dordt Defenders. Both games got out of hand quickly as the Gyrenes fell 13-1 against the Spartans and 13-0 against the Defenders.
In the morning game against the Spartans, starter Noelani Sokolik tossed two scoreless innings against the No. 15 team in the country with a strikeout in the first inning.
The scoreless tie was broken in the top of the third when Missouri Baptist blasted a three-run homer over the center field wall.
The Gyrenes got a run back in the bottom half of the inning with a sacrifice fly from Karsyn Moore bringing home Sienna Franklin, but that was all the scoring Ave Maria would do in both games.
Missouri Baptist added two more runs in both the fourth and fifth innings, with the runs in the fifth coming off another homer. The Spartans then hung six in the top of the seventh as the Gyrenes had trouble closing the game out. MBU smacked two more home runs in the frame to bring their game total up to four. It is the most home runs allowed in a single game in program history.
The Gyrenes scattered five hits from five different batters at the plate.
Unlike the opening game, Dordt scored the majority of their runs in the beginning instead of the end. The Defenders put up eight runs in the bottom of the first off five hits and five errors from the Gyrenes. Only the opening run was scored off a solo blast as the Defenders kept the ball in the park unlike the Spartans.
The Defenders added two more runs in the second, one in the third and two in the fourth to get up to 13. The two runs in the second were scored off a home run as Ave Maria finished with six allowed on the day.
At the plate, the Gyrenes collected three hits from three different batters. No Gyrenes reached third base against the Defenders.
With the two losses, Ave Maria falls to 4-11 and failed to get a win at the Space Coast Games.
The Gyrenes are back in action March 13-14 as conference play resumes for the Gyrenes. Ave Maria will be back home in sunny Southwest Florida as they host the Keiser Seahawks. Keiser was ranked No. 14 in the most recent NAIA Top 25 poll. The series opener is Friday, March 13, with first pitch set for 4 p.m. The game will be streamed live on the Urban Edge Network.
