(Emporia, Kan.) – Even with out slugging No. 16 Emporia State, the Central Missouri Jennies softball team dropped both games on Tuesday in Emporia, Kan. UCM fell 2-1 in the first game and 7-6 in the nightcap.
      The Jennies out hit ESU 18-15 in the two games, collecting five doubles to the Hornets two. Emporia State committed five errors in the contests, while Central Missouri had one. The Jennies also left 18 runners on base to the Hornets 14.
      Every Jenny that batted in the games recorded at least one hit on the day with senior Kelli Kurka leading the team with three. She also scored a team-high three times. Five different players had an extra base hit, including sophomore Ashlea Bengtson collecting her team-high ninth double of the season.
      Central Missouri will be back in action on Friday when the Jennies travel to No. 21 Nebraska Omaha for a 1 p.m. doubleheader.
 
Game 1: Jennies 1, No. 16 Emporia State 2
      After falling behind 1-0, Central Missouri ties it up in the sixth. In the bottom half of the frame, UCM gave up a homer for the ESU win.
      In the sixth stanza, with runners on first and third and one out, junior Brittany Martin singled through the left side for the RBI.
      The Jennies had two runners on in both the second and fifth innings but could not get that clutch hit.
      Emporia State got on the board in the fourth frame on a two-out single with  two runners on base. The Hornet's bomb in the sixth also came with two outs.
      Besides those two runners, sophomore Sarah Espy allowed only one other runner past second base, eight base runners total. Espy pitched the whole game, suffering her sixth loss of the campaign. She scattered seven hits, walked one and struck out two.
 
Game 2: Jennies 6, No. 16 Emporia State 7
      The Jennies played from behind the whole game, tying it with every at bat. Emporia State scored two in the sixth, one on a solo shot, that gave ESU the win.
      Down 7-5 heading into the seventh inning, Central Missouri recorded three hits, but only one run. With runners on first and second and one out, senior Kasey Martin doubled to left field for a RBI.
      In the second inning, UCM tied the game at one on a double by Brittany Martin that scored Kurka. Then in the fourth, Kasey Martin tallied another RBI on a single to left that scored Bengtson and put the score at 2-2.
      After giving up two runs to the Hornets, UCM came right back with its own pair of runs in the fifth. ESU committed back-to-back errors to put two Jennies on base before junior Katie Groves doubles to right center that scored both.
      Then in the sixth, with two outs and runners on first and third, sophomore Brandi Campbell singled up the middle for an RBI to tie the score at five apiece.
      Campbell, Kurka, and Kasey Martin all had two hits in the game. Kurka scored twice and Martin drove in two.
      Junior Lacey Dixon started the contest, going 3.1 innings. She gave up three runs on three hits, walking three and striking out four. Senior Jamin Landreth pitched 1.0 inning, giving up two runs on two hits, walking two. Espy suffered the loss in this game as well, going the final 1.2 innings for the Jennies. She gave up two runs on three hits, striking out two batters.