Haley Hinshaw of Motlow Lady Bucks softball[Photo courtesy of MotlowAthletics.com]
Motlow (2-2, 7-8) went on the road to Memphis last weekend and split a four-game series to open conference play. Friday the Lady Bucks won the series opener 9-6 before losing the nightcap 4-0. Saturday, Motlow dropped a 3-0 decision to the Lady Saluqis in the first game before capturing the series finale 8-4.
The Lady Bucks jumped out front 4-0 after two innings in the opener, but the Saluqis fought back and tied the score in the bottom of the fifth. Motlow put the game away with three runs in the sixth and two more in the seventh.
Samantha King, Haley Hinshaw and Jesse Beasenburg all homered for the Lady Bucks, while Kendall Durard drove in three runs. King got the win in the circle, pitching five innings and allowing one earned run with eight strikeouts. Autumn Davis and Heidi Durham each pitched an inning in relief.
Game two on Friday featured a great pitching performance by Southwest, allowing Motlow only five hits. Hinshaw had three of those hits, including two doubles, but the Lady Bucks couldn’t put a rally together. Jennifer Corbitt started in the circle, going five innings and allowing only two earned runs. Durham pitched a perfect final inning with two strikeouts.
In Saturday’s game one the Lady Bucks could not muster much offense with only five hits. Motlow wasted an excellent effort from King in the circle as she allowed only two earned runs and had 14 strikeouts while pitching a complete game.
The series finale featured a return to offense for Motlow. Hinshaw slammed a home run and added a double. King and Madison Hopkins joined her in driving in two runs each. Durham started in the circle and got the win, allowing four hits in four innings with five strikeouts. Davis got her first save of the season, allowing just one hit over the final three innings.
