App State softball dropped the final two games of its series against James Madison, 6-2 and 8-5.

Game 1 Recap (James Madison 6, App State 2)
Taylor Thorp opened the game with a two-run homer after a single by Emily Parrott, but the Dukes would pull away with consistent hitting throughout the middle game of the series.

Thorp has punched three bombs this season, increasing her team-high RBI count to 25.

The Mountaineers saw one hit apiece from the top six hitters in the lineup (Kayt Houston, Parrott, Mary Pierce Barnes, Thorp, Sidney Martin and Kaley Coltrain).

Delani Buckner pitched the first five innings and struck out five batters. Kapri Toone relieved for the final three outs with one strikeout.

Game 2 Recap (James Madison 8, App State 5)
The Dukes got out to a 5-0 start in the series finale before a game-tying rally by the Mountaineers in the top of the sixth. Addie Wray started the frame with an RBI double before Houston hit a grand slam to knot things up.

Houston, who went 3-4, has hit four home runs this season and totaled 22 RBI. Wray’s double was her second of the game and third of the season.

After Houston’s grand slam, each team performed a perfect inning on the defensive end, leading into the bottom of the seventh when James Madison’s Jasmine Hall hit a walk-off three-run homer.

In Barnes’ 200th career start, the graduate student tallied a single, increasing her batting average to .439 in conference play, the best in the Sun Belt. Barnes has recorded 12 hits in her last seven games.

Kapri Toone made her fourth start in the Black and Gold, pitching three innings with three earned runs and six hits. Kaylie Northrop entered the circle for the second half, striking out three batters with four earned runs on four hits.

App State also saw hits from Martin and Kylie LaRousa, totaling eight in the contest.

The Mountaineers will close the regular season with a home series against Coastal Carolina that is set to begin on Thursday at 2 p.m. App State will make one last push for a spot in the 2023 Sun Belt Tournament.