DURHAM, N.C. – In their first extra-inning contest of the season, Kansas (3-13) fell to tournament host Duke (7-11) 8-6 in nine innings at the Duke Softball Field.
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Down to its last three outs and down two runs to the Blue Devils in the top of the seventh, sophomore catcher Shelby Gayre responded for the Jayhawks. Gayre launched a home run over the left field wall, adding three runs and giving Kansas the 6-5 advantage.
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Duke did not back down and added the game tying run to notch the game at 6-6 in their half of the inning.Â
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After a scoreless eighth inning by both squads, Macy Omli was placed on second to start the ninth inning. Gayre again responded and plated Omli on a single to right field.
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In the Blue Devil’s half of the inning, Duke had runners positioned on second and third with two outs. A ball rocketed towards first base and ricocheted off of Becki Monaghan’s glove, who attempted to keep the ball in front of herself to stop the runners from advancing.
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Despite Monaghan’s extraordinary effort stopping the ball and a throw that nearly caught the second runner at the plate, the Blue Devil secured the 8-6 victory over Kansas.
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Brynn Minor earned the loss despite pitching five innings and allowing only two earned runs.
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NOTES
- Gayre’s home run tied Becki Monaghan and Sydnee Ramsey as team leaders in home runs (2).
- Gayre notched a career-high five RBI against Duke and has a team-leading 11 RBI on the season. Â
- The nine-inning game between the Jayhawks and Blue Devils is the first time this season that KU has played an extra-inning contest.
UP NEXT
Kansas concludes both the NC State Invitational and Duke Invitational tomorrow, splitting time between the two venues. The Jayhawks play Campbell at 8 a.m. (CT) in Raleigh, North Carolina before traveling to Durham to play Charleston Southern at 12 p.m. (CT).
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