Republic never quit, but neither did Carthage. In the end, it was a four-run rally in the bottom of the 6th inning that helped Carthage to a 9-6 victory Thursday night.
Republic fell behind 2-0 in the bottom of the 2nd inning and tied it up with two runs in the top of the 4th on four hits and a walk. Carthage answered with two more runs in the bottom half of the inning, and each team scored a run in the 5th, making the score 5-3 Carthage.
In the top of the 6th, Republic took the lead for the first time. Avery Romans walked and Kaitlyn Ragsdale and Megan Weis followed with one-out singles, scoring courtesy runner Mikayla Steinert. Ragsdale scored on an error, Ally Stolte walked, and Julia Higgins drove in another run with an RBI groundout, giving Republic a 6-5 win.
But in the bottom of the inning, Carthage tied the game with a lead off homer, then tacked on three more runs to pull away.
Stolte and Karleigh Summers led Republic with two base hits each. Ragsdale edged even closer to the school stolen base record, stealing one to run her season total to 28. The record is 29.
The Lady Tigers fall to 12-6 overall. They play two games Friday and three Saturday in the Springfield tournament, starting with a 10 am game Friday at Killian Softball complex.