(Courtesy Saint Louis Athletics)
Brianna Lore recorded a win, a save and six RBIs Saturday to lead Saint Louis to two wins at the All-Missouri Cancer Classic at Southeast Missouri State.
The Billikens thumped Missouri State 11-1 in five innings and followed with a come-from-behind, 7-4 triumph over Southeast Missouri State.
Against Missouri State, Lore provided all the runs the Billikens (8-3) would need in the top of the first inning. She followed a Lindsay Friedman leadoff single and two-out walks to Elizabeth Everingham and Kelsey Biggswith a three-run double to give Saint Louis an early advantage.
SLU scored five times in the third. The Billikens loaded the bases with one out on Everingham’s single and walks to Biggs and Lore. Hailey Weavers collected her first RBI as a Billiken with a single that scored Everingham, and Alex Nickel’s double plated Biggs and Lore to make it 6-0.
Macie Wheeler picked up her first collegiate RBI with a groundout that scored Weavers. After walks to Friedman and Madeline Brungardt filled the bases again, Mackenzie Peter doubled home Nickel, but Friedman was cut down at the plate to end the inning.
Everingham’s leadoff home run in the fourth, her third long ball of the season, extended the lead to 9-0.
The Billikens added two runs in the fifth. Friedman walked leading off, and singles by Taylor Meeks and Everingham loaded the bases. Biggs hit a comebacker to the circle that scored Friedman, and Lore finished the scoring with a single that chased home Brungardt.
Lore (5-3) allowed only four hits, did not walk a batter and struck out two.
Friedman got Saint Louis on the board right away in the SEMO game, belting her third homer of the season to lead off the game. However, the Bills found themselves trailing after SEMO tallied four times in the second on a grand slam.
SLU was blanked in the second, third and fourth innings but came alive in the fifth.
Laney Kneib led off with a double and moved to third on a wild pitch that was ball four of Friedman’s one-out walk. Peter drew a two-out walk to load the bases, and Everingham doubled to score Kneib and Friedman. Lore then came through again with a single that sent Peter and Everingham home with the tying and go-ahead runs.
After Kneib worked out of a second-and-third, one-out jam in the SEMO fifth, the Billikens added two insurance runs in the sixth. Kneib walked with one out, and with two away, came all the way around to score when Friedman reached on an error. Katie Kroeger drove in Friedman from third with an infield single.
Kneib (3-0) went five innings in the circle. She allowed three hits and two walks while fanning four. Lore came on and chalked up her first save of the season, striking out three in two hitless frames.
Up next for the Billikens is Tennessee State’s Tiger Invitational, scheduled for Friday-Sunday, March 7-9, in Nashville.
