Wright's 7th-inning home run gives UMHB Softball key win at Hardin-Simmons, Cru splits doubleheader

Photo of Bryton Wright by Luke Zayas/True To The Cru

ABILENE–Bryton Wright came up clutch for UMHB when The Cru needed it most on Friday evening.

In Game 2 of the doubleheader, facing a 2-0 deficit in the seventh inning against Hardin-Simmons, Wright stepped to the plate with Kaitlin Powers on first base and Taylor Henken standing on third. The sophomore, pinch-hitting in a critical situation, sent the second pitch she saw over the wall in left center field for a 3-2 lead.

There wasn’t a bigger hit in Friday’s doubleheader for UMHB than Wright’s homer, her first of the season, as the lead stood and the Crusaders split the first two games of the key ASC series. HSU, who entered Friday’s action with a 19-3 overall record and an 8-1 mark in conference play, had lost just once at home.

But UMHB, coming off a sweep of LeTourneau, challenged the Cowgirls at a high-level through both contests, and will go for the series win in Saturday’s series finale at noon.

The series opener saw HSU take an early 1-0 lead, and three UMHB errors did not help the cause, as the Cowgirls’ next three runs all went unearned. That 4-0 lead was established by the fifth inning, as Kristen McMillan scored on a throwing error and put HSU in good position for its 20th victory of the year.

UMHB’s offense found traction in the sixth, however, as Wright led off the inning with a double. Kylie Hoggatt delivered the first scoring play of the game for The Cru two batters later, singling to left field as Powers scored from third. Allyse Castillo immediately followed with an RBI single, cutting HSU’s lead to 4-2, and in the seventh, Bailey Frenzel led off with a solo home run. But three straight outs, including a pair of strikeouts, followed, as HSU pitcher Kylie Ruiz slammed the door shut on the UMHB comeback.

In game two, the Cowgirls again scored first, this time taking a 1-0 lead in the third inning on a Madu Hubbard base hit that scored Jazlynn Cantu. Pinch-hitter Erin Love gave HSU an insurance run three innings later with a sixth-inning RBI single, but as it turned out, it wasn’t enough separation.

Chloee Mason allowed nine hits in the circle for UMHB, but surrendered just two runs and HSU stranded eight baserunners in her complete-game outing. Mason’s ability to navigate situations with runners on base and less than two outs proved valuable in The Cru keeping the deficit manageable, as Mason won her fourth game of the year.

There was no better example of that than in the game’s final inning, as UMHB held a 3-2 lead after Wright’s go-ahead homer. With runners on first and third and just one out, Mason struck out Emily Jacobs on four pitches in a crucial at-bat. Lindsey Ratcliffe then fouled out to first base for the seventh inning’s third out, giving the Crusaders a significant victory.

Game Notes

Wright’s 3 RBIs in Game 2 are the second-most she has tallied in a single game in her career, outdone only by her 4 RBIs against SUNY-Oneonta on March 17, 2023.
Eileigh Whyte allowed just two hits in Game 1, marking her fourth consecutive outing of three hits or fewer given up.
Lindsey Polleschultz, who went 3-for-4 at the plate in Game 1, is 9-for-17 in games played in Abilene this season. She went 6-for-9 in the series at McMurry earlier in the ASC schedule.
Allyse Castillo, Bralyn Belk, and Bryton Wright each tallied at least one hit in both games of Friday’s doubleheader, with Castillo going 3-for-6, Belk, 2-for-5, and Wright, 2-for-5.
UMHB heads into Saturday’s series finale seeking its first road series win against Hardin-Simmons since 2018. This series is only the second time since 2019 that UMHB and HSU have met in Abilene.

Up Next

The Crusaders look to improve to above .500 overall for the first time since March 3, when they defeated Piedmont at the NFCA Leadoff Classic to improve to 4-3. First pitch from Ellis Field on the campus of Hardin-Simmons University comes at noon. Watch live at hsuathletics.com.