The Basics

Game 1: (RV) Evangel 2, Kansas Wesleyan 1 | Box Score

Game 2: (RV) Evangel 4, Kansas Wesleyan 2 | Box Score

Record: Evangel (30-6, 21-3), Kansas Wesleyan (22-18, 8-14)

Location: Salina, Kan. (Bill Burke Park)

SALINA, Kan. – Valor Softball concluded their four game road stand on Friday (Apr. 19) afternoon, taking on the Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes in their final road doubleheader of the regular season.

Evangel fought through adversity in both games, earning a pair of comeback wins on Friday. In game one, Kansas Wesleyan held a 1-0 lead heading into the fourth inning, but the Valor offense produced a run in both the fourth and fifth innings, as Maddy Meierer shut down the Coyote bats in the late innings, taking her 13th win of the season in the 2-1 win. The Valor trailed by a pair of runs in game two, heading once again into the fourth inning, but a three run outburst in the fourth inning and an insurance run in the sixth inning led to a 4-2 victory and sweep of the Coyotes on Friday, as Ashland Diggs earned her ninth win of the season and Madi Bentley took her second save of the year.

NOTABLE

• Maddy Meierer took the win in game one, throwing a complete game, moving to 13-1 this season in the circle.

• Ashland Diggs earned her ninth win of the season in game two, moving to 9-2 this year, while Madi Bentley took her second save of the year.

• Megan Stone, Ellie Facklam, and Karlie Romines all recorded three hits on Friday, leading the Valor offense.

• Evangel eclipsed the 30-win mark for the fourth time in Coach Jay Halbrook's career and the 14th time in Evangel history.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Kansas Wesleyan opened scoring on Friday with a run in the bottom of the third in game one to take a 1-0 lead.

• The Valor matched KWU's run in the top of the fourth. Karlie Romines opened the inning with a double down the right field line and a Megan Stone single moved Karlie to third. A Lauren Dill sacrifice fly got the job done, scoring Romines to tie the game, 1-1.

• Kenna Mayfield was hit by a pitch in the fifth inning and stole second base, coming across to score on a Ellie Facklam single to right field to give EU their first lead of the afternoon, 2-1.

• Maddy Meierer and the Valor defense shut down any scoring chance in the late innings, as Meierer threw 10 strikeouts in game one, taking a 2-1 win for EU.

• Kansas Wesleyan scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the third to take a 2-0 lead over the Valor.

• Evangel responded with a trio of runs in the fourth inning. Annslee Leeviraphan took advantage of a KWU error to get to second base and advanced to third on a Karlie Romines single up the middle. Romines stole second base and a Megan Stone single scored both Leeviraphan and Romines to make it a 2-2 game. A Phoebe Gardner double with two outs proved to be a clutch hit, scoring Stone and giving the Valor the lead in the inning, 3-2.

• The Valor took advantage of another KWU error in the sixth inning, as Ellie Facklam reached. A Karlie Romines single moved Facklam to second and a pair of unselfish plays, a sacrifice bunt from Megan Stone and a sacrifice fly from Lauren Dill scored Autumn Nold, who was running for Facklam, to add an insurance run for Evangel, 4-2.

• After Ashland Diggs had shut down the Coyote bats for the majority of game two, Madi Bentley entered in a save situation and locked the game down for EU, who took a 4-2 win, their 30th of the year, giving the Valor a shot at the regular season conference championship title on Tuesday afternoon.

UP NEXT

Evangel returns home to conclude their regular season, in search of a conference championship on Tuesday (Apr. 23) afternoon against the Saint Mary Spires, beginning at 2:00 p.m.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, visit Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelValor, Twitter (@EvangelValor), or EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on their favorite EU teams by downloading the Evangel Athletics Gameday App through the App Store or Google Play.