Butler Softball Takes Game One, Falls in Extras in Game Two
PARSONS, Kan. – Butler softball split its Tuesday doubleheader with Labette, taking game one before falling in a heartbreaking extra‑inning finish in game two.
PARSONS, Kan. – Butler softball split its Tuesday doubleheader with Labette, taking game one before falling in a heartbreaking extra‑inning finish in game two.
Game 1 (7 Inn.) – Butler 2, Labette 1
Labette struck first in the bottom of the fourth, scoring on a Grizzly error with runners on second and third to take a 1–0 lead.
Butler answered in the top of the sixth when Kyler Demel delivered an RBI single to score Emillee Stofferahn, tying the game 1–1. The Grizzlies then plated the eventual game‑winning run on a clutch RBI double from freshman Lizzy Lassley, bringing home Haely Hagemann.
In the bottom of the seventh, Butler walked the leadoff batter but immediately turned a double play. One pitch later, the Grizzlies secured the final out to seal the win.
Sophomore Anistyn Marcotte (W, 1–0) made her first start of the season and earned the complete‑game victory. She allowed just one hit and one unearned run while issuing five walks and striking out four across 26 batters faced.
Game 2 (8 Inn.) – Labette 10, Butler 9
Game two turned into a wild back‑and‑forth battle that ended in extra innings.
Trailing 5–0 entering the fourth, Butler erupted for nine runs in the inning to take a 9–5 lead. Labette responded with two runs in the bottom half to pull within 9–7.
A chaotic sequence in the sixth allowed Labette to tie the game. With two outs and a runner on third, a walk put runners on the corners. The runner from first attempted to steal second and was caught in a rundown, allowing the runner from third to break for home. The throw back to the plate wasn't in time, and both runners were safe, knotting the score at 9–9.
Neither team scored in the seventh, sending the game to extras. With the international tiebreaker rule placing a runner on second to start the eighth, Butler came up empty in the top half. In the bottom of the inning, Labette's leadoff hitter grounded to third, but the throw to first sailed high, allowing the ghost runner to score from second for the walk‑off win.
The Grizzlies move to 2–6 on the season.
Next up: Butler opens conference play next Wednesday on the road at rival Hutchinson, with games scheduled for 2 and 4 p.m.