Reed’s Grand Slam, Todd’s First-Career Win Gives Kentucky Sweep
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The No. 20 Kentucky softball team run-ruled the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders 12-1 and 10-0 on Saturday afternoon to sweep a doubleheader to give the Wildcats their third and fourth-consecutive run-rule wins.
The Wildcats scored 22 runs on the day and have now scored 40 runs in the last four games. In game two, junior shortstop Katie Reed belted her first-career grand slam to left field and Abbey Cheek hit her team-leading 10th home run in the bottom of the sixth to walk off the game in run-rule fashion.
UK will now enjoy the rest of its Southeastern Conference bye weekend without a game until Tuesday when it makes a return trip to Richmond, Kentucky for a 6 p.m. ET game with the Eastern Kentucky Colonels.
Key Stat
Four. Kentucky has now won its last four games in run-rule fashion, with a 10-0 win over Eastern Kentucky on Tuesday, an 8-0 win over Louisville on Wednesday and two wins on Friday.
Key Play
The key play of the games was Katie Reed’s grand slam, the first of her career. Brooklin Hinz led off the inning with a single, which was followed by an Erin Rethlake double and a walk to Lauren Johnson. Reed then belted her fifth HR of the season to left to score four runs.
Key Player
Bethany Todd was the key player on Friday, notching her first-career win as a Wildcat in the circle. Todd went the distance, allowing just one run on four hits, walking one and striking out four.
Game 1 – Run Recap
MTSU got on the board first with an RBI infield single that just beat out the throw from the left side of the infield with two outs. MTSU 1, UK 0
Abbey Cheek tied the game on a SAC fly to center to score Katie Reed, after leading off bottom of the first with a double to left. UK 1, MTSU 1
Brooklin Hinz hit her second HR of the season to left to give UK it’s first lead of the day, which was followed by an MTSU error. UK 3, MTSU 1
In the third, UK plated two more runs on a two-RBI single from freshman Lauren Johnson, which was hardly-hit back up the box to score Rachael Metzger and Erin Rethlake. UK 5, MTSU 1
Kentucky struck for seven runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Brooklin Hinz hit a bases-clearing double into LF to score three, which was then followed by an RBI single from Katie Reed. A few defensive errors allowed more runs to score and plate the game-ending runs. FINAL – #20 Kentucky 12, Middle Tennessee State 1
Game 2 – Run Recap
In the bottom of the first, sophomore Bailey Vick singled into right and came around to score on an RBI single from Jenny Schaper. UK 1, MTSU 0
Kentucky struck for four runs in the bottom of the second. Brooklin Hinz led off the inning with a single, which was followed by an Erin Rethlake double and a walk to Lauren Johnson. Reed then belted her fifth HR of the season to left to score four runs. UK 5, MTSU 0
Lexi Cushing scored the only MTSU run of the game on a home run to left in the top of the fourth. UK 5, MTSU 1
Kentucky loaded the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the fourth, and scored two times on bases-loaded walks to Abbey Cheek and Jenny Schaper. UK then plated a third run on an RBI groundout from Hinz. UK 8, MTSU 1
In the bottom of the sixth, Kentucky won the game in walk-off fashion thanks to a walk-off home run from Abbey Cheek off her name on the John Cropp Stadium scoreboard. FINAL – #20 Kentucky 10, Middle Tennessee State 1
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