Softball drops heartbreaker in extra innings

BOISE, Idaho – The bats showed up once again for the Tommies on Sunday morning at the Blue Collar Classic, but some untimely errors and hits allowed ultimately undid their would-be perfect weekend with a 9-8 loss in eight innings against Weber State.

Ava Kleinfeldt got the nod in the circle from head coach Jen Trotter. The sophomore allowed one run in the bottom of the first after back-to-back one-out hits. She worked out of the frame with book ending strikeouts.

Her offense got her out in front in the bottom of the second after a lead off single from Cassidy Carby and double from Morgan Klein. Kameron Monson scored the first run on a sacrifice fly and Klein took home after Ruby Moore broke for second and induced a rundown. Moore was retired to end the inning, but the Toms had the 2-1 lead.

After a scoreless bottom half of the second, Laken Lienhard led off the third with a home run to double the Purple lead. Kleinfeldt ran into some trouble after a leadoff walk and single. Her defense committed an error on a sacrifice attempt which allowed a run to score. A second single in the inning tied the game. Weber ended the frame with a two-run lead, 5-3, on three singles, a walk, and a hit-by-pitch.

Neither team added on in the fourth. Ella Cook relieved Kleinfeldt after a one-out single. The Tommies threatened for more but got just one run out of a bases loaded situation with two outs on a Carby RBI walk.

Cook kept her opposition off the scoreboard in the fifth but allowed one in the bottom of the sixth. With a two-run deficit and just three outs to work with, the Tommies had their backs against the wall. Laken Lienhard started the seventh inning comeback with a lead off home run. Two outs later, Ella Cook belted the game-tying run home to straight away center field and then worked a scoreless inning to force extra innings.

Kameron Monson played the hero role in the eighth with a two-run home run to score Morgan Klein. Unfortunately, the comeback magic ran out as Weber State scored one on a lead off single and two on a walk-off home run down the right field line.

Up Next
The Tommies head to their first true non-conference doubleheader on Wednesday, March 11 for a pair against the Drake Bulldogs (5-12). Game one is scheduled for 2:00 pm. The Toms are 3-1 all-time against Drake with three wins in a row last season: 2-1, 4-2, 2-1.

Follow Along
For any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas softball team, follow along on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) at @TommieSoftball.

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Team Stats

Laken Lienhard

Ella Cook

Cassidy Carby

Zoe Trotter

Players Mentioned

Cassidy Carby

Ella Cook

Morgan Klein

Ava Kleinfeldt

Laken Lienhard

Kameron Monson

Ruby Moore

University of St. Thomas Athletics