BENTONVILLE, Ark. – Drury finished the Alvy Early Memorial Classic on Saturday afternoon with two wins over St. Edward's, 2-1, and Arkansas-Monticello, 5-4, to improve to 4-5 on the season.
 
GAME ONE – Drury 2, St. Edward's 1
Coming off the Panthers' first-ranked win of the season yesterday against No. 24 Missouri Southern, Drury was looking to stay hot.
 
Drury struck first in the bottom of the second inning. Kelsey Palmer started the inning off by reaching on an error by the Hilltoppers' second baseman. After Kenna Trower was hit by a pitch, it would put two runners on for Avery Budde. Budde would hit a line shot into the left centerfield gap to score Palmer with ease, but Trower was thrown out at the plate trying to take the extra base.
 
Trailing 1-0, St. Edward's would threaten at the top of the third but left two stranded after Kaley Adzick struck out Darian Deleon looking to end the inning.
 
Neither team was able to score in the fourth, sending it to the top of the fifth, where a one-out double from Dafne Mercado started the inning out for the Hilltoppers. A sacrifice bunt moved the runner to third, followed by an RBI double from Deleon to knot the game up at one.
 
Still tied a one, St. Edward's went down in order at the top of the seventh, sending it to the bottom half with the bottom three in the Drury lineup due. Avery Budde singled up the middle to give the Panthers their first runner with an out. Budde would be run for by Emma Niemczyk. A fielder's choice put Reece Anderson on first with two outs for Landry Cochran. A single for Cochran put runners on the corners for Isabel Ervin. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Ervin would hit a hard ground ball up the middle to score Anderson and give Drury the 2-1 win.
 
GAME ONE NOTES

• Isabel Ervin and Avery Budde both recorded two hits in the Drury win. They are also the only two who had RBIs.
• Budde was the only Panther with an extra-base hit.
• Gabrielle Bax led Drury in the field with three assists.
• Natalie Wilks was the pitcher of record for Drury. She came in relief of Kaley Adzick in the seventh inning and did not allow a base runner.
• Adzick threw six innings in the start. She allowed one run and struck out five.
• St. Edward's had four players with one hit. Darian Deleon was one of those four players; she had the lone Hilltopper RBI.
• Maddie Aguilar picked up her second loss of the season. She pitched 6.2 innings, allowing eight hits and two runs, one unearned.
• Drury was 3-for-9 with two outs in the win. St. Edward's only had one hit with two outs.
• The win was Brooke Gajewski's 100th career win.
• Drury is now 1-0 all-time against the Hilltoppers.
• It was the Panthers' first walk-off win of the season. Following the St. Edward's game, Drury is 3-3 in games decided by one run.

 
GAME TWO – Drury 5, Arkansas-Monticello 4
Coming off a walk-off thriller, the Panthers had to bounce back and play Arkansas-Monticello for the final game of the weekend.
 
The Blossoms scored first in the bottom of the first inning. A one-out single put two on for the Monticello. After a fielder's choice, Zoe Bridges would have an RBI single to center field.
 
After neither team could get any offense to go in the second inning, the Panthers put up their first crooked number of the weekend, starting with an Isabel Ervin leadoff single. Claire Nelson followed, two batters later, with a single of her own, and an Avery Budde walk loaded the bases for Kelsey Palmer. During Palmer's at-bat, Ervin would score on a passed ball as each runner advanced 60 feet. Palmer walked to bring Gabrielle Bax to the plate. Bax worked a long at-bat to record a sac fly and score Drury's second run of the game.
 
After the Panthers took the 2-1 advantage, the Blossoms answered with two runs of their own in the third inning. A lead-off home run and walks regained the lead for Monticello.
 
Monticello extended their lead to two runs in their half of the fourth, courtesy of a lead-off walk and a double.
 
With both teams struggling to get any offense in the fifth and sixth innings, the Drury bats came alive in the top of the seventh. An Ervin lead-off single started the inning. After a flyout, Claire Nelson hit her first career home run to center field to bring the Panthers within one, 4-3. The Panthers kept moving their way down the lineup with a single and a double following Nelson. Gabrielle Bax's single to center field took the lead for Drury, 5-4.
 
Natalie Wilks shut the Blossoms down in the bottom of the seventh and ended the game on a strikeout, for the Panthers to get another dramatic win.
 
GAME TWO NOTES

• Isabel Ervin had her second multi-hit of the day, with three singles from the lead-off spot.
• Claire Nelson hit her first career homer in the seventh inning to tie the game at four.
• Jordyn Foley started in the circle for Drury. Foley threw three innings, allowing three runs and seven hits.
• Natalie Wilks was the winning pitcher. Wilks pitched the final four innings, allowing only one run and striking out three.
• Ashlynne Vote had two hits for Monticello. One of her hits was the lead-off homer in the third inning.
• Drury tied the all-time series with Monticello in the win at three games apiece.
• All four of the Panthers' wins this season have come by one run.

 
UP NEXT
The Panthers are off next weekend. Their next game will be on February 21 against Fort Hays State as game one of the Washburn Invitational in Topeka, Kansas.
 
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