WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. — West Liberty's softball team got off to a fast start and held on late to claim a 6-4 victory over Salem in the opening game of Saturday's doubleheader at the Hilltopper Softball Complex.
The Hilltoppers (28-23, 18-10) wasted no time putting pressure on the Tigers, striking for three runs in the bottom of the second inning. Jaden Conrad opened the scoring when she crossed the plate on a fielder's choice from Kadence Williams. Moments later, Kayla Mancuso added another RBI with a fielder's choice of her own, and Sydney Johnson capped the inning with an RBI groundout to give West Liberty an early 3-0 lead.
West Liberty continued to apply pressure in the third inning, taking advantage of a Salem wild pitch to bring Kassydi Harris home and stretch the lead to 4-0.
Freshman pitcher Madison Angus turned in a strong start, scattering four hits across four scoreless innings to pick up her seventh win of the season. Salem did break through in the sixth inning with a two-run homer from Kylie Zinn, but the Hilltoppers answered quickly. Sara Simon crushed a two-run shot of her own to left center in the bottom of the frame, regaining the momentum and padding the lead to 6-2.
Leah Alford came on in relief to close the door, earning her first career save despite a late push from the Tigers, who plated two runs in the seventh to cut the margin to two. Alford induced a key ground ball to seal the win.
Simon led the offense with two hits, including her home run, and two RBIs. The Hilltoppers also showed their speed on the bases, swiping six bags to keep pressure on the Tigers' defense.
Game 2
West Liberty's bats stayed hot in Game Two of Saturday's doubleheader, as the Hilltoppers erupted for 11 runs on 11 hits to roll past Salem, 11-3 in six innings, and complete the sweep at the Hilltopper Softball Complex.
The Hilltoppers wasted no time setting the tone, plating four runs in the bottom of the first. Ashlyn Tapman delivered a two-run double to left center, followed by an RBI double from Jaden Conrad and a sacrifice fly by Isabella McKee to quickly make it 4-0.
West Liberty kept the pressure on in the second inning, with Sara Simon's RBI single — paired with some aggressive baserunning from Paytyn Tucker — pushing the lead to 5-0.
McKee continued her big day at the plate in the third, launching a two-run homer to left to give WLU a commanding 7-0 advantage.
After Salem got on the board in the top of the fourth, the Hilltoppers answered right back. Jillian Morr doubled home Sydney Johnson, Faith Randolph knocked in another with a double of her own, and Tapman capped the inning by driving in a third run with a groundout, making it 10-1.
Salem managed two runs in the fifth, but West Liberty wasn't done. Morr came through once again in the bottom half with an RBI single to stretch the lead to 11-3 and effectively seal the victory.
Tapman earned the win in the circle, tossing four solid innings while striking out three. Kadence Pettit closed out the final frame with a scoreless inning of relief.
Morr and Tapman each finished with three RBIs, while McKee added three of her own on her homer and sacrifice fly. In all, six different Hilltoppers collected at least one hit as the team's offense fired on all cylinders.
Seeding and matchups for the Mountain East Conference tournament are expected to be released Sunday. The tournament opens Wednesday in Salem, Va.
