MADEIRA BEACH, Fla. – The Butler softball team won a pair of games against UAlbany on day two of the Make-It-Happen Games in Florida. The Bulldogs (11-3, 0-0 BIG EAST) used a seven-run fifth inning to break a 1-1 tie in game one and then held on for an 8-2 victory. In game two, the Great Danes (0-9, 0-0 America East) tied the game at one in the fourth inning but gave up two runs to the Dawgs in the fifth, giving Butler the doubleheader sweep.
Game 3: Butler 8, UAlbany 2 (7 innings)
In the top of the third inning, with runners on first and second,
Makena Alexander hit a double to right field that sent
Hailey Conger across the plate. UAlbany answered with a run of its own in the bottom half. The 1-1 tie held through the fourth.
Butler broke things open in the fifth, scoring seven runs keyed by three singles and a double from
Olivia Moxley. Four walks and an error contributed to the Dawgs barrage. The Great Danes got one run back in the bottom half, but that ended the scoring.
Rylyn Dyer (4-1) started in the circle for Butler and picked up the complete-game victory. In 7.0 innings she allowed two runs on five hits and three walks.
Game 4: Butler 3, UAlbany 1 (7 innings)
After two scoreless innings, Butler got on the board in the third.
Cate Lehner reached on an error, stole second, and was knocked home by a
Hailey Conger single.
UAlbany answered in the fourth with a run-scoring single. The game was tied, 1-1, through four.
In the fifth, with
Sydney Carter on third and
Leigh Vande Hei on second,
Ella White singled to right and sent them both home, giving the Bulldogs a 3-1 lead.
Kayla Noerr (3.1-IP, R, 2H, 4BB, K) started in the circle for Butler. She was replaced by
Gwen Baker (4-1) in the fourth inning with the score tied, 1-1. Baker finished the game and earned the win. In 3.2 innings, she held the Great Danes scoreless, allowing only four hits while striking out two with no walks.
Bulldog Bits
- Butler hit six doubles on the day, with two coming from Olivia Moxley and two coming from Makena Alexander. Hailey Conger and Ella White each had one.
- White's two RBI in game two give her 16 this season and 120 for her career.
- Cate Lehner's stolen base gives her 53 in her career and ties for the No. 3 spot on Butler's All-Time list.
- Rylyn Dyer produced her second complete-game victory this season and the fourth of her career. She has four total wins this season and ten in her career.
Up Next
Butler remains in Madeira Beach for the final day at the Make-It-Happen Games. The Bulldogs are scheduled to play Binghamton and Bellarmine.
