Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 By Kevin Farr
Murray State Sports Information
BRANSON, MO – In a Top 10 national softball showdown, Kaylee Carter doubled home Lexi Meadows with the winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning Friday to lift second-ranked Murray State past ninth-rated Kirkwood Community College.

The Lady Aggies also smashed Three Rivers Community College in a 14-0 run rule to remain undefeated at 18-0 on the season. Murray State will wrap up the Annual Branson Festival on Saturday with a twinbill against NOC-Enid as well as Southwestern Illinois starting at 8:30 a.m.

Facing a Kirkwood squad that ended Murray State's season in last year's World Series semifinals, Coach Aaron Mullens' unit got a bit of revenge in the nip-and-tuck affair.

Murray State broke a scoreless deadlock in the third inning as Avery Beauchamp coaxed a walk, Brylee Fanning singled with one away and Haili Igou followed with a three-run homer over the rightfield fence.

Kirkwood answered with four tallies in the top of the fourth frame, cashing in four singles and three free passes, but the Lady Aggies immediately responded with three runs of its own. They capitalized on five free passes and a Kennedy Lord single to take a 6-4 advantage.

A pivotal error led to a pair of Kirkwood runs in the fifth that knotted the score once again and that's how it stayed until the seventh with DrewAnn White slamming the door for Murray State in relief.

Cady Ammons led off the seventh with a double and that brought on Meadows to pinch run. She then rounded the remaining bases with the walkoff game winner from Carter.

Routt tossed the first three-plus stanzas, yielding three runs on four hits with a pair of strikeouts. Boozer was credited with two-thirds of an inning in relief, yielding one run on two hits. White then twirled the final three to earn the victory, allowing two unearned runs on three hits as well as fanning a pair.

Bradi Harman returned to the lineup from injury for the first time in two weeks and led the offensive charge with two hits. Fanning, Igou, Ammons, Carter and Lord all posted one.

Game two didn't have near the drama as the Lady Aggies erupted following a scoreless first frame by plating four in the second, five in the third, two in the fourth and three more in the fifth inning.

That proved to be well more than enough support for ace Bella Hardeman, who also returned to the lineup from injury and fired four scoreless innings, allowing two hits and struck out six. Carolyn Overton tossed the final frame, giving up one hit and struck out two.

Lord was the offensive catalyst of the nine-hit attack with a pair of home runs and four runs batted in. Carter also blasted a solo homer while Beauchamp, Fanning and Igou all chipped in doubles. Harman ended with two hits again as did Fanning.