NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Belmont Softball's amazing momentum was slowed on its home field on Wednesday evening. The Bruins (14-4) dropped a pair to visting Kennesaw State (16-5), marking the first time this season the team posted back-to-back losses.
Game one was a defensive grudge match. Both teams posted a single run in the second inning, thanks to senior Chelsey Deloney's (Gardendale, Ala.) solo home run over the centerfield fence. Through sheer will and determination, the Bruins pulled ahead, 4-2, by the bottom of the fifth inning. Sophomore Hayley Baker (Rockwall, Texas) knocked her second home run of the season, adding two more to the scoreboard. The Owls fired back and trimmed the lead to a single run in the top of the sixth but Belmont was unable to find a way to answer back in the bottom of the sixth or seventh inning. Kennesaw State gained a 5-4 lead in the top of the seventh and won by the same score.
Belmont never found an offensive groove in the nightcap. KSU took a one-run lead in the top of the third but BU was able to knot the score in the bottom of the fourth. Back-to-back walks by Deloney and junior Lexi Rouse (Macon, Ga.) opened the door for a single down the right line by Baker to net a run. The Owls went on to explode for five runs in the top of the sixth inning and added a bonus run in the top of the seventh to take a 7-1 lead. The Bruins were unable to plate any additional runs and fell by the same score.
The Bruins had a hard time at the plate over the two games. Deloney led, batting .500 with two runs, two hits and a home run.
Five different pitchers saw action inside the circle for BU. Sophomore Ashley Johnson (Kingwood, Texas) rang up eight strikeouts. Rouse tallied five strikeouts.
Belmont returns to action this weekend at the Leon Smith Classic, hosted by Southeast Missouri State, in Oxford, Ala.
