Lady Tigers sweep Henderson State to win Battle of Ravine series with 3-1 record

A RKADELPHIA- Ouachita Baptist completed a double header sweep on Sunday in the annual Battle of the Ravine softball series against Henderson, as the Lady Tigers took Game 3, 6-0, while holding on late to take Game 4, 5-3, at Sully Anderson Field in Arkadelphia.

Ouachita (16-5, 3-1 GSC West) picked up the series victory, 3-1, over Henderson State (8-10, 1-3 GSC West) to open Gulf South Conference Tournament play. In Game 3, Ouachita used a four-run first inning to cruise to victory, while junior starting pitcher Kristen Rigsbee allowed just three hits in a complete game victory. In the final game of the series, the Lady Tigers had to make defensive plays in the final inning to hold off the Lady Reddies during their final at-bat.

Ouachita freshman Megan Askew led off Game 3 with a single up the middle, followed by back-to-back singles from junior Sarah Bell and senior Haley Chambers. Chambers picked up an RBI, scoring Askew to give Ouachita a 1-0 lead. Rigsbee then drove in an RBI on a sacrifice fly, scoring sophomore Jana Deen. After an RBI groundout from senior Korrine Cook, freshman Bailey Sanders recorded an RBI single, driving in the final run of the inning to take a 4-0 lead.

Askew walked to lead off the second inning, scoring three batters later on an RBI groundout to stretch the lead to 5-0. Rigsbee scored the final run in the third inning after recording a single and scoring on an RBI triple from Sanders to set the final score at 6-0.

Rigsbee was in command throughout, going seven innings in allowing just three hits and recording 10 strikeouts. Britney Benedict for Henderson State took the loss, going six innings and allowing five earned runs on nine hits.

In the final game of the series, Ouachita Baptist again opened the game with a big offensive inning, as Rigsbee cleared the bases with a two-run home run (4) after Askew came around to score, giving Ouachita a 3-0 lead in the first inning.

Henderson State answered back in the fifth inning with a three-run home run from Ashley Ray, tying the score at 3-3. In the bottom half of the fifth, the Lady Tigers picked up base runners in Rigsbee after a single to left field and sophomore Taylor Austin via a walk. That set the stage for Sander’s two-run triple, giving Ouachita a 5-3 lead that would hold, despite a pair of base runners at second and third with no outs in the top of the seventh for Henderson State.

Rigsbee (9-1) picked up her second victory in as many games, going 4.1 innings, while giving up two earned runs on six hits, including three strikeouts. Sanders came up big in both games, going 3-for-6 with 4 RBI, while Rigsbee finished at 3-for-3 with 3 RBI and two runs scored. Askew added a 4-for-6 performance in the leadoff spot, raising her season average to .411 in her debut campaign.

Henderson State’s Melissa Decker took the loss on the mound, going 5 innings and allowing five earned runs.

Ouachita Baptist travels to Pine Bluff on Thursday to take on Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 2 p.m.