THE RUNDOWN
WICHITA FALLS – A big fifth inning allowed 15th-ranked West Texas A&M (24-5, 7-3 LSC) to get by MSU Texas (11-12, 6-10 LSC), 12-6, in the Lone Star Conference series opener at Mustangs Park on Friday. Leading 3-1, the Lady Buffs pushed across five runs in the fifth to pick up the win.
 
Sophomore outfielder Lauren Lindgren paced the Midwestern State offense, going a perfect 4-for-4 with a two-run double and two runs scored. The Guyer product recorded the first 4-for-4 performance of her career, marking the second time she collected four hits in a game.
 
Starting pitcher Gracie Bogle (3-4) was tagged with the loss, giving up eight runs on 12 hits with four walks and four wild pitches in five innings of work.
 
After WT plated a pair of runs on four hits in the top of the first, the Mustangs answered in the bottom of the inning. Sophomore outfielder Tucker Caraway reached on an error to open the frame and advanced to second when senior third baseman Kelcee Thompson was hit by Kilee Halbert's first offering with one out. Both runners moved into scoring position when catcher Shanna McBroom sailed a throw over Halbert's head on the return throw to the rubber. Junior first baseman Samantha Loos picked up the RBI on a groundout to cut the deficit in half, 2-1.
 
Bogle settled in and kept the high-powered Lady Buffs offense off the board in the second and third innings before adding a run in the fourth. Stevie McLemore laced a leadoff single into right and moved up to second on a wild pitch. Aggressive baserunning allowed McLemore to advance to third on a groundout to the right-side of the infield before coming home on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Ashley Hardin.
 
Disaster struck in the top of the fifth for the Maroon and Gold as WT pushed across five runs on five hits. With one out, the Lady Buffs logged four-straight hits, including two for extra bases to score three runs. After a lineout to short, Hardin lined an RBI single to right, followed by a wild pitch with runners on the corners. MSU escaped further trouble as Bogle struck out Suka Van Gurp with the bases loaded.
 
Trailing 9-1 in the bottom of the sixth, MSU stayed alive with a rally to keep the comeback bid alive. Lindgren collected her third hit of the night on a leadoff single to right-center, followed by a walk to junior second baseman Carli Woolsey. Freshman shortstop chopped a one out single up the middle to plate Lindgren, but the Mustangs were unable to chip away further.
 
After a three-run top of the seventh for WT, the Mustangs hung a crooked number of their own in the bottom of the frame, but it was not enough to complete the upset. MSU loaded the bases with no outs on a pair of free passes and a leadoff single from Thompson. On her fourth hit of the night, Lindgren snapped a 38-inning stretch without an extra base hit for the Maroon and Gold on a two-run double into the right field corner. A wild pitch and a groundout allowed freshman pinch runner Marley Eller and Lindgren to score, but a pair of popups ended the MSU threat.
 
Seven different players from WT logged multi-hit performances as the Lady Buffs collected 16 hits in the win.
 
GAME NOTES
- Midwestern State surrendered a season-high 12 runs on 16 hits in a 12-6 setback to 15^th-ranked West Texas A&M on Friday.
- The Mustangs recorded their third game without an error this season.
- West Texas A&M stole six bases against the Mustangs, the most of the season and second-most allowed in program history.
- MSU recorded its first extra-base hit in the last six games, snapping a 38-inning stretch as Lauren Lindgren deposited a two-run double in the bottom of the seventh.
- Junior first baseman Samantha Loos reached safely for the 20^th-straight game on a two-out single in the bottom of the third.
- Sophomore outfielder Lauren Lindgren recorded the first 4-for-4 game of her career, marking the second-time the Denton native collected four hits in a game. She previously went 4-for-5 in a 12-10 win over Oklahoma Panhandle State on March 7, 2017.
 
UP NEXT
Midwestern State is back on the diamond tomorrow, wrapping up the three-game set with No. 15 West Texas A&M with a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. at Mustangs Park.