CONWAY - Hendrix boosted its standing the SCAC standings as the race for a tournament berth entered its final stretch with a vital home series win over the LeTourneau YellowJackets on Friday and Saturday at Warrior Softball Field. The Warriors swept Friday's doubleheader courtesy of back-to-back walk-off hits by Tori Maldonado, before falling in Saturday's series finale.

Game 1 (W, 4-3)
Hendrix edged out LeTourneau in a 4-3 walk-off win in the series opener, with Tori Maldonado recording the game-winning hit in the final inning. Hendrix compiled 13 hits on the day, with the final hit being the most decisive.

The game went scoreless until the fourth inning when Maldonado scored, driven in by Emerson Naismith's single to left field, to put Hendrix ahead 1–0.

In the fifth inning, LeTourneau's Taylor Gouge scored on a single by Laynie Davis, tying the game at 1–1. The Warriors responded in their half with Julia Hayes scoring off Austynn Caudle's fielder's choice. Rylee Harris then scored on a sacrifice fly by Maldonado, extending Hendrix's lead to 3–1.

LeTourneau narrowed the gap in the sixth inning with Rylie Shipp scoring on a single, bringing the score to 3–2.

In the seventh inning, LeTourneau's Maddie Flanery scored to tie the game at 3–3 and threaten to send the game to extra innings. However, Kaycee Schoen doubled to lead off the home seventh and then advanced on a Caudle single to put runners on the corners for Maldonado. On an 0-1 count, the junior chopped a ball up the middle to make the play too dificult for LeTourneau's Flannery to make at home, allowing Schoen to score the winning run and hand Hendrix the series opener.

In the circle, Emma Salis pitched a complete game for the Warriors with an efficient 7.0 innings on 88 pitches, 63 of which were strikes. She allowed 12 hits and 3 earned runs while striking out 1 batter. Salis did not issue any walks and hit one batter during her performance, earning her a season record of 6-13.

Schoen recorded three hits and scored a run, including a double, contributing significantly at the plate. Rylee Harris also posted three hits while scoring once and adding a stolen base to her performance. Maldonado drove in two runs and tallied two hits, enhancing the team's offensive output.

Game 2 (W, 3-2)
It was Maldonado who proved to be the hero again as Hendrix secured the series win with an extra-inning walk-off win in Game 2, overcoming a 12-hit performance from the YellowJackets.

In the first inning, Hendrix took an early lead when Kaycee Schoen homered to right center, but that was all Hendrix could manage in that frame as the score stood at 1–0 after the first inning.

LeTourneau responded in the third inning, evening the score at 1–1 when Rylie Shipp's single to center field, followed by a throwing error, allowed a run. Hendrix regained the lead after Ella Boling reached on a fielding error and scored the go-ahead run with Bell Jaramillo's triple to right field.

In the sixth inning, LeTourneau plated the tying run on an RBI single. Harris tripled to center to lead off the sixth but was left stranded at third as the Warriors were unable to score the go-ahead run. Gianna Robinson worked around a two-out single in the seventh to retire the side, retiring the final hitter of the inning with her lone strikeout of the night. Hendrix got the go-ahead run on base once again but was unable to convert on the opportunity, sending the game into extras.

Robinson put the YellowJackets down in order in the eighth to turn it back over to the Warrior bats. Harris doubled to left center with one out to put the winning run in scoring position and with two outs, Maldonado delivered once again, driving a ground-ball up the middle to score Harris and walk it off again.

Robinson pitched a complete game in what turned out to be the strongest outing of her career, scattering 12 hits over her 8.0 innings while allowing just 2 runs without issuing a walk.

Game 3 (L, 7-4)
Hendrix recorded 10 hits in the series finale but struggled to turn those hits into runs and were unable to keep the pace with LeTourneau down the stretch as the visitors were able to avoid the series sweep.

After surrendering a run in the first, Hendrix responded in the home first as Emerson Naismith and Bell Jaramillo both walked, setting up Kaycee Schoen's reach on a fielding error, which allowed Naismith to score. Tori Maldonado followed with an RBI single, bringing Schoen home for the go-ahead run.

The third inning saw LeTourneau tie the game with Jenna Carter's RBI double bringing  the score to 2-2 after three innings.

In the fourth inning, both teams added a run. Jaramillo advanced to third on a throwing error and then scored the tying run on a sacrifice fly by Rylee Harris.

Hendrix regained the lead in the fifth inning. Peyton Frady singled and scored on Ella Boling's RBI single, making it 4-3 for the Warriors.

LeTourneau responded in the sixth inning with two runs to take a 5-4 lead. That lead got extended in the final inning with a couple LeTourneau extra-base hits proving to be the back-breaker for Hendrix. The Warriors were unable to bring the tying run to the plate in the final inning despite a Frady one-out walk.

Up Next
Hendrix (13-22, 9-18 SCAC) will head into the final week of the regular season needing a series win over Austin College coupled with results elsewhere to qualify for the SCAC playoffs.