By Jim Powers

Nikki Taylor paced the Maryville offense by going 4-for-6 with three doubles and four runs scored as the Saints split a doubleheader with Drury winning game one 6-1 and dropping the nightcap 4-3 at Maryville Field on Saturday afternoon.

The Saints took an early 1-0 lead as Taylor led off the bottom of the first with a double and scored on a Krystal Rock single to right center field. Drury would draw even with the Saints in the third with a Kari Hillenburg solo home run over the right field fence, but the Saints would counter by scoring five runs of their own in the bottom half of the frame. After Maryville put runners at the corners to start the inning, Taylor would again double in the gap in right center to give the Saints a 3-1 lead. Maryville would then create some two out lightning as Taylor would score from third on a wild pitch and then after an Alex Flasch walk, Wendy Macias would drive home Flasch on a hard-hit single to give the Saints a 5-1 advantage. Maryville would get an insurance run to take a 6-1 lead after 3 innings. Macias would go the distance giving up only six hits while stiking out six Panther batters to garner her seventh win of the season. Jessica Kjeldgaard would suffer the loss and drop to 8-10 on the season.

Drury would start the second game of the day off with a pair of one-out singles by Marrisa Ross and Carson Forge. Ross would come home on a Shelby Weissenbach single to left field to take an early 1-0 lead. Forge would then score on a wild pitch and then with two outs, Grace Hargadon would lace a double down the left field line to plate Weissenbach and give the Panthers a 3-0 advantage.

Maryville would cut into the lead in the home half of the first with Taylor starting the inning with a single and would come home on a Rock single to cut the deficit to 3-1 at the end of the first. The Panthers would get the run back in the second as the first two batters walked and Alyssa Sargent would score on a throwing error to extend the lead to 4-1. Maryville got back in the run column as Taylor doubled for the third time on the day down the left field line and scored on a Rock sacrifice fly to center to cut the Drury lead to 4-2. The middle innings of the game turned into a pitchers dual between Macias and Weissenbach, who entered the game in the fifth to relieve Kjeldgaard as neither team could muster any offense. Maryville pushed across a run in the seventh as Ashley Marks scored on a Rock single to give the Saints a chance with two outs and runners on first and third, but the rally would end when Flasch flew out to the right fielder.

With the doubleheader split, Maryville would improve to 11-24, 7-13 in GLVC play while the Panthers would extend their record to 14-22, 7-13 in conference play. The Saints return to action on Sunday, April 12 as Missouri S&T comes to town for a doubleheader that begins at 12 noon.