BELTON, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor softball team could not overcome multiple big innings by the #1 team in the country as the Cru dropped both ends of a doubleheader to top-ranked East Texas Baptist Friday evening in Belton. ETBU won game one 18-7 and took game two by a 9-0 score. UMHB is now 4-8 overall and 1-4 in American Southwest Conference play on the season. The Tigers move to 7-0 overall and 5-0 in the ASC.
 
Both teams put up big innings as ETBU took game one 18-7. The Tigers put up eight runs through the first three innings and appeared to be cruising before the Cru erupted for six runs in the bottom of fourth. Milly Cesare, Lexi Harris and Bailey Stoker all doubled home runs and Tatum Stover and Izzy Gutierrez added RBI to cut the gap to 8-6. ETBU added a six-run inning of its own in the top of the fifth to make it 14-6. Taylor Holman hit a solo home run in the bottom of that inning to keep the Cru alive, but the Tigers finished off the game with four more runs in the top of the sixth. Cesare and Stover had two hits apiece for UMHB. Kami Flores took the loss in the circle to drop to 0-1 for the Cru. Three different players had three hits for ETBU and Hannah Garcia drove in five runs.
 
The Tigers rode a seven-run third inning to a 9-0 game two victory. UMHB committed three costly errors in that inning with six of the seven runs being unearned. ETBU tacked on two more runs in the top of the fourth as the game ended on the run rule after five innings. Elisabeth Paul had the Cru's only hit with a pinch-hit single leading off the bottom of the fifth. Bayleigh Grogan took the loss for UMHB despite giving up just one earned run.
 
The two teams will close out the series with a noon single game on Saturday. The Cru will then continue its home stand with a non-conference doubleheader against Houston-Victoria on Tuesday at Dee Dillon Field.