Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

Butler dropped a BIG EAST doubleheader to St. John's Saturday in Indianapolis, as the visiting Red Storm took 7-4 and 6-3 wins. The teams will play a single game Sunday to complete the three-game series. The game has been moved up to 11 a.m. due to the potential for rain in the afternoon. The game will air on the BIG EAST Digital Network.

Saturday's contests featured a strong home crowd for Butler's Softball Alumni Day.

In the first game, Kaitlin Doud got the start in the circle and went five innings before Kacey Starwalt came on in relief for the final two innings.

The visitors struck first in the fourth inning with a sacrifice fly that gave SJU a 1-0 lead. Butler responded immediately to tie the game with a RBI triple from Alyssa Lach.
St. John's took a larger lead with a three-run, pinch-run home run from Marissa Rizzi in the top of the fifth, putting the Red Storm up, 4-1.

St. John's's lead went to 7-1 in the top of the sixth as they pushed across three runs behind three hits and two errors.

Butler loaded the bases in the sixth and got two runs off a bases-loaded walk from Christina Candotti and an RBI single from Jenna Foreman. However, Butler left the bases loaded. The Bulldogs left seven runners on base over the course of the final three innings.

Candotti's RBI single in the seventh was the final tally of the game in the 7-4 decision.

Foreman led the team with two hits. Doud allowed three earned runs in five innings. She surrendered five hits and one walk.

Tori Free got the win for SJU, allowing three earned runs in 6.2 innings. Monique Landini and Christina Melendez each had two of SJU's eight hits.

In the second game, St. John's got single runs in the second and fifth before putting up three runs in the sixth. Those runs came on a bases-loaded hit by pitch and a two-run single by Kaitlin Mattera.

After Melendez homered in the top of the seventh to give SJU a 6-0 lead, Butler attempted a rally in the last half-inning. Madi Christiansen homered to right field with two teammates on base to cut the lead to 6-3. Lach doubled, but McKenzie Murray came on in relief to record the final two outs for her second save of the day.

???????Gabbi Schnaiter got the start for Butler, allowing five runs in 5.2 innings. Lach and Foreman each had two of Butler's six hits.

St. John's remains in the BIG EAST lead with a 9-2 conference record as part of their 21-13 mark in 2017. Butler is now 5-5 in the BIG EAST (17-22 overall).