MESQUITE, Texas – It was a tough first day for the MACU Softball team as it opened its 2025 season at the Southern Collegiate Sports NAIA Invitational being played at the Mesquite Girls Softball Complex on Thursday. The Evangels opened the slate with a tough 2-1 loss to Oklahoma Wesleyan before dropping a 9-4 decision to Bethany.
 
GAME ONE / Mid-America Christian vs. Oklahoma Wesleyan
SCORE

• Oklahoma Wesleyan 2, Mid-America Christian 1
  • Mid-America Christian (0-1)
  • Oklahoma Wesleyan (4-1)

PITCHING DECISIONS

• Win: Gabby Simpson (1-0)
• Loss: Chana Wolfe (0-1)
• Save: Teri Stanton (1)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Kisbel Vizcaya – 2-3, 2B
• Makenzie Thurman – 2-3, R, SB
• Chana Wolfe – L, 5 IP, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 H, 3 BB, 3 SO

SCORING SUMMARY

• TOP 5^th – MACU – Makenzie Thurman scored on a wild pitch – MACU 1, OKWU 0
• BTM 5^th – OKWU – Laramie Neff reached on a throwing error by p, SAC bunt; Jill Blair scored on the error – MACU 1, OKWU 1
• BTM 5^th – OKWU – Brooklyn Purtell hit a sac fly to rf, RBI; Bailey Gustus scored – OKWU 2, MACU 1

GAME SUMMARY

• Both teams struggled to get runners into scoring position through the first four innings as the only occasion a runner reached second was in the bottom of the second when OKWU's Raegan Rector reached on a one-out single and Taryn Rhodes reached on a two-out walk. However, MACU starting pitcher Chana Wolfe was able to induce a fielder's choice groundout to short to get out of the inning.
• Mid-America Christian threatened to put up a big inning in the top of the fifth when Isabel Ray lined a sharp two-out single up the middle and Makenzie Thurman hit a deep single to the right field corner to put runners at first and third. However, MACU made a baserunning miscue on a double steal as Thurman successfully stole second before Ray got caught in a rundown between third and home. Ray was able to safely get back to third, but then Thurman got caught in a rundown between second and third before Ray got thrown out trying to score on the relay back to home.
• With Thurman at third with two outs, she was able to come home when OKWU starting pitcher Gabby Simpson spiked a pitch into the dirt, setting the score to 1-0.
• However, the work came undone in the bottom of the fifth for MACU as Oklahoma Wesleyan took the lead for good. After the first two batters reached on a walk and a hit-by-pitch, Wolfe accidentally made an errant throw to first on Laramie Neff's sacrifice bunt, allowing Jill Blair to score to tie the game up at 1-1 with runners at second and third with no outs.
• Even though Wolfe was able to get Carley Billings to sharply ground out to the pitcher in the next at-bat for the first out, the Eagles pushed the winning run across on Brooklyn Purtrell's deep sac fly to right to make it a 2-1 game.
• The Evangels had some great chances in the last two frames when Kisbel Vizcaya led off the sixth with a sharp line drive double to right-center. However, MACU was unable to push her across due to popping out twice before the inning was ended on a strikeout.
• In the seventh, MACU had a great opportunity to tie or take the lead when Makenzie Thurman and Kayten Herman hit back-to-back one-out singles and advanced to second and third off a wild pitch. However, a pop out to short and a ground out to short abruptly halted the MACU rally as OKWU held on for the 2-1 win.

GAME NOTES

• Despite coming up on the short end, Mid-America Christian managed to out-hit Oklahoma Wesleyan by a 7-2 margin while MACU committed the lone error in the contest.
• Makenzie Thurman and Kisbel Vizcaya led the MACU bats with each player slashing 2-for-3 while Vizcaya recorded the only extra-base hit with a double. Thurman tallied MACU's only run as well as stole a base.
• Despite coming up on the short end, junior starter Chana Wolfe put together a solid outing, allowing just two unearned runs in five innings on one hit and issued three walks to go with three strikeouts.
• Brooke Wyatt pitched an inning of relief to make her MACU debut, allowing no runs and gave up just one hit in the appearance.
• Isabel Ray and Madisson Chavez each recorded a hit in their Evangels debuts with each slashing 1-for-3.
• Oklahoma Wesleyan snapped MACU's four-game win streak in the series as the Evangels now own a 12-11 lead in the all-time series.

GAME TWO / Mid-America Christian vs. Bethany
SCORE

• Bethany 9, Mid-America Christian 4
  • Mid-America Christian (0-2)
  • Bethany (1-1)

PITCHING DECISIONS

• Win: Jessie Garcia (1-0)
• Loss: Brooke Wyatt (0-1)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Makenzie Thurman – 1-2, 2B, 2 RBI, R
• Isabel Ray – 3-4
• Kisbel Vizcaya – 2-4, 2B, R
• Madisson Chavez – 2-4
• Nyssa Dunn – 1-3, HR, RBI, R

SCORING SUMMARY

• TOP 2^nd – BC – Abagail Nitzel singled to center, RBI; Ulissa Rivas scored – BC 1, MACU 0
• TOP 2^nd – BC – Kalee Aguilar doubled to center, 2 RBI; Abagail Nitzel scored; Tamia Butler scored – BC 3, MACU 0
• TOP 4^th – BC – Ulissa Rivas homered to left, RBI – BC 4, MACU 0
• BTM 4^th – MACU – Makenzie Thurman doubled to left-center, 2 RBI; Madisson Chavez scored; Kisbel Vizcaya scored – BC 4, MACU 2
• BTM 4^th – MACU – Talyn Lerma singled down rf line, RBI; Makenzie Thurman scored – BC 4, MACU 3
• TOP 5^th – BC – Abagail Taylor hit a sac fly to rf, RBI; Destiny Espinoza scored – BC 5, MACU 3
• TOP 5^th – BC – Ulissa Rivas doubled down lf line, RBI; Vryah Morgan scored – BC 6, MACU 3
• TOP 5^th – BC – Kalee Aguilar tripled to right-center, 3 RBI; Abagail Nitzel scored; Tamia Butler scored; Ulissa Rivas scored – BC 9, MACU 3
• BTM 6^th – MACU – Nyssa Dunn homered to left-center, RBI – BC 9, MACU 4

GAME SUMMARY

• While MACU was able to get out of a jam in the top of the first, the Evangels had no such luck in the second inning as the Swedes put together a two-out rally with the next four batters reaching. An Abagail Nitzel RBI single and a 2-RBI double for Kalee Aguilar put the Evangels into a 3-0 hole.
• Bethany added an insurance run in the top of the fourth when Ulissa Rivas led off the frame with a solo shot to left to stretch it to a 4-0 lead.
• The Evangels finally got the bats going in the bottom of the fourth as the first four batters reached for MACU. After Kisbel Vizcaya and Madisson Chavez led off the frame with a pair of singles, Makenzie Thurman drove them both in by ripping a sharply lined double into the left-center field gap before she scored a batter later on Talyn Lerma's RBI single down the right field line that barely glanced off the glove of the reaching first baseman.
• Even though MACU managed to cut it to a one-run game, things came unraveled for the Evangels in the top of the fifth as the Swedes responded with a massive five-run frame, putting MACU in a deep 9-3 hole. A tough result during that frame was when Aguilar hammered a two-out, bases-clearing double to the right-center field gap.
• Mid-America Christian managed to get one run back in the bottom of the sixth as Nyssa Dunn recorded MACU's first home run of the season, a solo shot over the left-center field wall. However, the Evangels were unable to muster any more offense in the 9-4 defeat.

GAME NOTES

• Bethany scored its nine runs on 12 hits while the Evangels recorded their four runs on 11 hits.
• Isabel Ray became the first Evangel to record a three-hit game this season as she finished 3-4 with all three of her hits being of the singles variety.
• Makenzie Thurman wrapped up her strong day at the plate with a 1-for-2 performance as her double resulted in the first multi-RBI game for MACU this season. The senior first baseman overall wrapped up her day slashing 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and a pair of runs.
• Kisbel Vizcaya also had a solid day at the dish as her 2-for-4 outing with a double and a run allowed the senior shortstop to wrap-up the day batting 4-for-7.
• Madisson Chavez notched her first career multi-hit game after batting 2-for-4 with a run scored.
• Talyn Lerma and Nyssa Dunn recorded the other two RBIs for MACU with each tallying the first of their Evangels careers.
• In what turned into a bullpen game, Brooke Wyatt suffered the loss for the Evangels after allowing three earned runs through two innings of work while Chloeaunna Madbull-Jim and Dunn made their debuts for MACU in the circle.
• With the defeat, MACU fell to 3-9 all-time against the Swedes.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will continue the SCS NAIA Invitational on Friday as the Evangels will face off against Missouri Baptist at 1:30 p.m. before taking on Tabor at 4 p.m.