OAKLAND • With a runner at first base and two outs in the bottom of the first, it appeared Tuesday's Metro Women's Athletic Association game between Incarnate Word and Ursuline would head to the second inning tied at one. Twelve batters, six hits, five walks and 10 runs later, the host Bears instead held a commanding 10-run lead going in the second on the way to an 11-4 victory over the ranked Red Knights. Ursuline (8-7), which has won three in a row, now sits alone atop the MWAA standings with a 3-0 record. "It was nice that we came out of the gate strong," Bears coach Amy Petruska said. "That was a big two-out rally that kind of put the momentum in our direction. We showed discipline at the plate, so it was nice to see that." The No. 6 team in the STLhighschoolsports.com small-schools rankings, Incarnate Word (9-3, 2-2) lost for the third time in four games since starting the season 8-0. "We had two outs and they had scored one run and the umpire ended up not calling many pitches. So, we walked a few people, they get some base hits and end up scoring 11 runs," Red Knights coach Rachel Gill said. "After that, the strike zone got back to where it should have been and we shut them down the rest of the way. But it was very much an uphill battle from the start. I don't think that score reflects how it should have been, but what can you do?" Things started well for IWA in the top of the first, as Katie Lacefield got a two-out base hit, stole second, and came home on a double to right-center by cleanup hitter Jade Gates. In the home half of the first, Maddie Spinks led off with a walk, got the first of her three stolen bases, and scored on Annah Baize's double to the fence in left-center. After a flyout to right, Baize was retired at third on a fielder's choice, leaving a runner at first with two away. That's when 11 straight batters reached base for Ursuline - 10 of them scored. Consecutive walks by Michelle Motta, Abigail Tepen and Bess Ramsey gave the Bears a 2-1 lead. A run-scoring infield single by Ally Bernhard was followed by another bases-loaded walk by Shelby Petrus to make it 4-1. Spinks, with her second at-bat in the frame, then cleared the bases with a three-run triple to right-center to increase the lead to 7-1. "That was so great to get that and get all my teammates in because they worked hard with two outs," said Spinks, a junior outfielder who went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBI. "We came out ready to play and ready to win, which is what you need." Baize picked up her second RBI of the inning with an infield hit and then Peyton Dart walked and Emma LaMartina reached on an infield hit to load the bases again. Motta made it 9-1 with the fourth infield single of the inning and Tepen closed the scoring with a two-run single to right. The only other scoring in the contest came in the Red Knights' fourth when Micah Aarps doubled with two out, Lacefield reached on an error, and Gates unloaded a three-run home run off a parked car, which was some 15-20 feet beyond the fence in left-center. The big blast was Gates' fourth of the season and cut the IWA deficit to 11-4. Aarps, Lacefield, Gates - the Nos. 2-4 hitters in the Red Knights' lineup - all had four hits and were on base five times. The 5-9 hitters in the IWA order, however, went a combined 0-for-15. "We didn't quite make the adjustments we needed to at the plate at bottom of the order," Gill said. "Our top four hitters are very, very consistent as far as getting on base and scoring runs, but we do only win when the rest of our lineup contributes as well. We needed a full effort from all nine to be able to climb back from that first inning and we just didn't have that today." Becker, a sophomore left-hander, settled down after the long first inning and allowed just three base runners over the final five innings. "She's been injured, but she came out throwing very well," Gill said. "Shutting them out the next (five) innings after not being given anything in the strike zone in the first inning is huge and we're really excited about that as we go forward." Freshman pitcher Ramsey was solid in the circle for the Bears. She allowed just four hits and didn't walk a batter, while striking out seven. "She did give up a couple big hits, but I think she worked hard and threw a lot of strikes," Petruska said. "I'm very pleased with her outcome and her work ethic." After sending 16 batters to the plate in the first inning, Ursuline sent up just 18 batters combined the rest of the game. "I definitely would have liked to have seen our offense continue to score some more runs as the game progressed," Petruska said. "But, overall I'm still happy with the outcome." Incarnate Word now has a week off. It won't play again until next Tuesday when it hosts Hazelwood Central. "We played a lot of games last week and this was our second game this week already," Gill said. "We need a couple good practices." Ursuline, on the other hand, will