No. 4 Bulldogs Split Doubleheader with Centenary

SHREVEPORT, LA -- The No. 4 Texas Lutheran softball team split their Saturday doubleheader with Centenary dropping the first game, 7-6, before responding with an 8-1 win in game two at Centenary Softball Complex.

The loss marked TLU's first regular season SCAC loss since 2019 and the first loss to the Ladies since 1990.

The Bulldogs (17-3, 5-1 SCAC) got on the board first in the first inning. Following a leadoff single from freshman Caelee Clark (Montgomery/Lake Creek), Clark stole second and third - with the stolen bases Clark surpassed Kelly Jurden's freshman stolen base record of 29 stolen bases. After a Linzee Leal (Corpus Christi/Mary Carroll) walk, Madison Johnson (Round Rock/Round Rock) would drive in Clark with an RBI single. Laura Hernandez (Missouri City/Ridge Point) would add two more runs with a two-RBI double. Hernandez would come across to score via a wild pitch to cap the inning as Texas Lutheran took a 4-0 lead.

Centenary (6-14, 2-4 SCAC) responded in the bottom of the second with six runs of their own - all coming with two outs.

Centenary added a run in the fourth to extend its lead to 7-4.

Riley Futrell (Florence/Florence) would score on a Ladies error in the sixth inning to shrink the Ladies lead to 7-5.

The Bulldogs got an opportunity in the top of the seventh, after a leadoff single from Clark, Leal would move her over via sacrifice bunt. Serena Gonzalez (Corpus Christi/Foy H. Moody) would drive in Clark with an RBI single to bring the Bulldogs within one with two outs. A Laura Hernandez single would get two on for the Bulldogs but a groundout would end TLU's chances at a comeback.

Hernandez paced the Bulldogs at the plate with a 3-for-4, two RBI showing. 

Senior Amanda White (Lockhart/Lockhart) took her third loss of the season in the circle, surrendering six runs on six hits in 1.2 innings pitched with one strikeout and two walks. Sydney Ouellette (Corpus Christi/Gregory-Portland) finished the game for the Bulldogs, giving up just one run on three hits with one strikeout.

TLU's 66-game consecutive SCAC regular season win streak comes to a close with the loss. It was TLU's first loss in conference play since March 2, 2019 to Southwestern.

Texas Lutheran still took the series with an 8-1 victory in game two in addition to Friday's 1-0 win.

A five-run third inning broke things open for TLU with four runs coming off the bats off Madison Johnson and Laura Hernandez.

Senior Ashlyn Strother (Seabrook/Clear Falls) was again a force in the circle, throwing a five-hit complete game, allowing just one unearned run and no walks with three strikeouts of the Ladies offense. Strother is now 9-0 on the year.

Seven Bulldogs registered a hit in the game with Johnson bringing in a trio, Hernandez plating two, and Linzee Leal and Isabella Rodriguez (Pearland/Pearland) recording an RBI each.

Johnson got the scoring started with a first inning sacrifice fly to give TLU an early 1-0 lead. Centenary would respond with a run of their own in the bottom of the second.

After a quiet second inning, TLU plated five runs on five hits with three runs coming with two outs. After Kirsten Williams (Pearland/Glenda Dawson) reached on an error, an infield single from Harleigh Russell (Fort Worth/Boswell), and a single from Linzee Leal would load the bases, a two-RBI single from Madison Johnson would give the Bulldogs a 3-1 lead. Texas Lutheran would push three more runs across in the inning courtesy of a two-RBI double from Laura Hernandez and an RBI single from Isabella Rodriguez - stretching the lead to 6-1.

Caelee Clark would steal home in the sixth to tack on another run for TLU in the fourth. Clark now has 34 stolen bases on the season, already sitting in ninth in a single-season in TLU history.

Linzee Leal would add the Bulldogs final run of the game in the sixth with an RBI single, scoring Kirsten Williams.

Next up, the Bulldogs meet Wellesley College for a doubleheader on Monday, March 27, at Ed Kruse Stadium. First pitch is set for 5 and 7 PM. All streaming and stat links can be found on tlubulldogs.com.