UCA run-rules North Florida at home
CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas softball team hadn’t forgotten what happened last season against North Florida.
The Bears faced the Ospreys five times, more than any opponent, and lost all five times. North Florida swept UCA in the regular season, opened the ASUN tournament with a 5-3 win over the Bears and knocked them out of the consolation bracket with a 3-1 win.
UCA came into this weekend looking to avenge all of those losses and did just that when it won 12-2 in a five-inning run-rule Sunday at Farris Field to complete a threegame sweep to open its ASUN schedule.
“We prepared really hard for their pitching this week,” UCA Coach Jenny Parsons said. “Yeah, there was a little bit of a revenge factor in there, but we’re just excited we got a sweep against a very good North Florida team.”
UCA (18-7, 3-0 ASUN) swept the weekend series by a combined 26-6 run differential.
“Since the Kansas tournament, and even against Oklahoma State, we’ve had a pretty good approach at the plate,” Parsons said. “We were aggressive in the strike zone and not chasing stuff outside the zone. We can hit as long as we stay with what we do best.”
UCA was in control early, taking a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning on Morgan Nelson’s three-run home run.
The Bears added five more runs in the third inning to make it 8-0. Josie Willingham drew one of her three walks to score Madi Young after UCA loaded the bases.
With the bases still full of Bears, UCA’s No. 9 hitter, Jenna Wildeman, hit a ball off shortstop Savannah Channell’s head but too short for North Florida left fielder Regan Hermeling to reach with a dive. The ball bounced just short of Hermeling and rolled to the wall, scoring all three runners on base and Wildeman for an inside-the-park grand slam.
“That was big time right there,” Parsons said. “Once it got by that outfielder, it was off to the races for Jenna. She’s so fast.
The home run was the first of her career for the redshirt junior from Bentonville.
North Florida (15-10. 0-3) broke up a no-hitter in the top of the four innings, scoring one run on a Shannon Glover single and another on a fielder’s choice to make it 8-2. But UCA tacked on four runs in the bottom of the frame.
Nelson hit her second home run of the day, and third of the series, to make it 10-2. Freshman Colleen Bare followed Wildeman’s lead and hit her first career home run by sending a ball halfway up the berm beyond the center field fence, making it 11-2. Kylie Griffin added a run later in the fourth inning with an RBI single to make the score 12-2.
Jordan Johnson (8-3) picked up the win with five innings in the circle. She allowed 2 earned runs on 2 hits, struck out 3 and walked 3.