SEARCY – The Harding softball team had 30 hits in the Great American Conference doubleheader at Southwestern Oklahoma Saturday. The Lady Bisons won the first game 8-4 and the second game 9-2. Harding had a season-high 15 hits in each game.

Harding improves to 26-11 overall and 17-9 in the GAC.

Southwestern Oklahoma falls to 9-22 overall and 9-17 in the GAC.

Key Innings (Harding 8, Southwestern Okla. 4)

-         T1 – Nicole Shano hit a single to right field that scored Hanna Jones from second. (Harding 1, Southwestern Okla. 0)

-         T3 – Nicole Shano and Chelsea Blankenship both drove in a run for the Lady Bisons. (Harding 3, Southwestern Okla. 0)

-         B3 – Breanna Simmons hit a single for Southwestern Oklahoma that drove in Keanni Barron from second. (Harding 3, Southwestern Okla. 1)

-         T4 – Harding scored four runs on five hits in the inning. Chelsea Blankenship highlighted the inning when she doubled in two runs. (Harding 7, Southwestern Okla. 1)

-         B5 – Keanni Barron hit a two-run home run for the Bulldogs. (Harding 7, Southwestern Okla. 3)

-         T6 – Allison Hyatt stole home for the Lady Bisons (Harding 8, Southwestern Okla. 3)

-         B6 – Hannah Franklin hit a solo home run for the Bulldogs. (Harding 8, Southwestern Okla. 4)

 
Key Statistics

-         Harding had a season-high 15 hits. Ashton Bryce and Nicole Shano each had three hits.  Chelsea Blankenship, Makenzie Chappell and Madison Fraley all had two hits.

-         Nicole Shano and Chelsea Blankenship each had three RBIs. It was the sixth time this season each player has had a multiple RBI game.

-         No Harding batters struck out in the game. It was the first time since 2019 which also happen to be against Southwestern Oklahoma.

-         Southwestern Oklahoma had five hits with two players having two.

-         Lily Tanski got the win for Harding to improve to 17-6 on the season. It was her 14th complete game. She also had five strikeouts.

-         Miranda Grover received the loss for Southwestern Oklahoma and falls to 5-12 on the season.

Key Innings (Harding 9, Southwestern Okla. 2)

-         T4 – Kendall Tramel hit a single through the left side that score Chelsea Blankenship (Harding 1, Southwestern Okla. 0)

-         B4 – Keanni Barron singled through the left side that scored Dustie Pence and Jordan Collins for the Bulldogs. (Harding 1, Southwestern Okla. 2)

-         T5 – Harding scored five runs in the inning on four hits. Nicole Shano highlighted the inning when she hit a three-run home run to left field. It was her fifth home run of the season. (Harding 6, Southwestern Okla. 2)

-         T6 – Makenzie Chappell hit a single through the left side that scored Hanna Jones for the first run. Jordan Cabana hit a sacrifice fly to left field that scored Nicole Shano. (Harding 8, Southwestern Okla. 2)

-         T7 – Chelsea Blankenship hit a single to the left field that scored Madison Fraley (Harding 9, Southwestern Okla. 2)

 
Key Statistics

-         Harding had 15 hits in the game. It was 13th time the Lady Bisons have had more than 10 hits in a game this season.

-         Chelsea Blankenship led Harding going 4-for-5 at the plate. Madison Fraley also went 3-for-4. Nicole Shano, Makenzie Chappell and Jordan Cabana all had two hits.

-         Southwestern Oklahoma had four hits and were led by Jordan Collins who came off the bench and went 2-for-2.

-         Jessica Bridges got the win for Harding to improve to 8-4. She gave up one earned run and struck out three. Abby Burch pitched one inning of relief and didn't give up a hit.

-         Alisa Friesen received the loss for Southwestern Oklahoma and falls to 2-5 on the season.

Up Next

-         The two teams will wrap up their series with a single game Sunday starting at noon.