JOPLIN, Mo. - The Winona State University softball team battled back to earn a split at Missouri Southern State University, falling in game one 3-1 but rallying to defeat the Lions in game two, 6-4.
Savannah Serdynski collected five hits overall - including four in game two - while
Abby Smith and
Abbie Hlas combined for a key victory to salvage the split.
Missouri Southern State 3, Winona State 1
In game one, the host Lions scored one run in the bottom of the first and a pair in the fifth frame to capture a 3-1 win over Winona State.
Macy Brodin collected two hits in three at-bats to pace Winona State at the plate.
Abbie Hlas,
Marissa Mullen,
Ashlee Chantos, and
Savannah Serdynski all had one base hit in the contest. WSU took advantage of a pair of singles and a wild pitch to plate their only run, coming in the top of the sixth inning.
MSSU's Avery Tallman held WSU to just six hits as a team.
Abbie Hlas went a full six innings for the Warriors, allowing nine hits and three runs, all earned.
Winona State 6, Missouri Southern State 4
Savannah Serdynski went 4-for-4 in game two to help lead Winona State to a comeback win over the Lions, as the Warriors used a 5-run fifth inning to offset a strong start by Missouri Southern State in the nightcap of the non-conference doubleheader.
Serdynski's four-hit game combined with a 3-for-5 day at the plate for
Abbie Hlas allowed WSU to overcome a 3-run first frame by the home side. WSU's
Carly Engelhardt added a pair of hits in the contest as well; WSU put together 13 hits overall while the pitching tandem of
Abby Smith and
Abbie Hlas combined to hold MSSU to seven hits.
Smith had the start in the Warrior circle and went 5 and 1/3 innings, striking out three Lions along the way to her ninth win of the year. Hlas entered the game in relief and held MSSU hitless in 1 and 2/3s innings of work. Hlas picked up one strikeout and did not concede a walk to earn the save.
For Serdynski, the 4-for-4 performance marks the first four-hit game by a Warrior this season. The freshman from Sullivan, Wis. has hit safely in five of the last six games. The perfect mark at the plate was the first time a WSU player had gone 4-for-4 since
Abbie Hlas accomplished the feat twice in the 2022 season, first against Wayne State on April 21 and then two days later against UMary on April 23.
Winona State (17-8 overall, 0-0 NSIC) will next be in action in their NSIC opener, traveling to Upper Iowa University for a doubleheader on Tuesday, March 28. The Warriors and Peacocks are set for a 2 p.m. start in Fayette, Iowa.
