GEORGETOWN, Texas -- Texas Lutheran Softball finished a four-game conference series sweep of Southwestern with 4-0 and 16-6 victories Saturday in Georgetown.
The Bulldogs extended their Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season win streak to 46 games and moved within three of tying the conference record of 49 - set by TLU over the 2014, 2015 and 2016 seasons.
TLU, ranked second in the NFCA poll for NCAA Division III, moved its overall mark to 31-1. That overall record is TLU's best mark in program history through 32 games. The Bulldogs improved to 16-0 in the SCAC.
Southwestern fell to 17-14 overall and to 6-10 in the SCAC.
At Taylor-Sanders Field,
Maitlin Raycroft (Spring/Klein) tossed a complete-game three-hitter in the early game and improved to 15-0 overall. Raycroft struck out seven and did not walk a batter.
Kelly Jurden (Brenham/Brenham) stole four bases and drove in three runs with a 2-for-4 performance at the plate.
McKay Bloxham (Katy/Katy) tripled and had two hits and two runs scored. She drove in a run and also had a stolen base.
In game two,
Cassie Roche (Corpus Christi/Gregory-Portland) belted a grand slam home run in the third inning that put TLU ahead 7-4. The Bulldogs trailed 4-2 through two innings.
After Southwestern closed within 7-6, the Bulldogs put up nine runs in the fourth inning.
Bloxham drove in three runs and had two hits, and
Haley Padilla hit a two-run home run and scored three times.
Madisyn Cates (Baytown/Sterling) and
DeAnna Hernandez (Sugar Land/Dulles) each drove in a pair of runs.
Jurden scored three times in the second game and had two more stolen bases.
Kelsie Stone (Helotes/O'Connor) improved to 5-0 with the win in relief. Stone went 3-2/3 innings and allowed two earned runs.
TLU returns to Seguin for next weekend's final SCAC regular-season series - a four-game set against Centenary College (La.). First game Friday is set for a 5 p.m. start at Ed Kruse Stadium - Morck Softball Field.
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