UPCHURCH LEADS CHATTANOOGA TO SHUTOUT OVER FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL
Clearwater, Fla. ? Rain suspended the game until nearly 5:00 p.m., but the Lady Mocs (16-14) picked up where they left off to take game one of the Speedline Invitational against Florida International 7-0 on Friday.
Sophomore designated player Laci Upchurch (Madison, Tenn.) hit two home runs, making it four on the season, in the win. She also added four RBIs, a new career high.
Upchurch started the offensive attack hitting a lead off home run, her third of the season, to left field to make the score 1-0 in the top of the third.
Chattanooga capitalized on six walks by the Panthers’ pitcher Penny Eastman, and added eight hits.
Senior pitcher Ashley Frizzell (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) pitched her second shutout of the season, improving her record to 5-6 and adding three strikeouts and walking only one batter.
Chattanooga’s roster thinned out early with freshman catcher Brittany Eason (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and sophomore center fielder Ashley Cuticchia (Rising Fawn, Ga.) staying behind due to illness. Later, as play resumed, senior second baseman Brittney Whittier (Scottsdale, Ariz.) also was sidelined due to illness.
Freshman catcher Lynleigh Hurndon (McDonough, Ga.) and Upchurch reached on walks before both were advanced to scoring position by a sacrifice bunt by senior left fielder Jeannie Cochran (Maryville, Tenn.).
Junior center fielder Tara Tembey (Folsom, Calif.) hit her second home run of the season to drive in both players on base to make the score 4-0 in the middle of the fifth.
Upchurch continued the swinging of the bats in the top of the sixth hitting a two-out three-run home run over the left field fence again scoring sophomore second baseman Carey Cooper (Sweetwater, Tenn.) and junior right fielder Ashlan Clarkson (Chickamauga, Ga.), who both reached on hits.
Cooper went two-for-three with one walk in her fifth appearance of the season with her batting average now sitting at .667.
Florida International was led by Katie Bell with two hits on two at bats of the team’s six hits.
The Lady Mocs face the Bowling Green Falcons and George Mason Patriots on Saturday at 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. to close out round robin play at the Speedline Invitational.
Catamounts Fall to UNC Wilmington on First Day of Catamount Classic
CULLOWHEE, N.C. ? Western Carolina softball’s (7-16) seventh inning rally fell short as the Catamounts lost to UNC-Wilmington (10-14) 6-5 in the first day of the Best Western Catamount Classic Friday at the Catamount Complex.
With two outs in the top of the seventh inning, Western Carolina right fielder Beth Hauser hit a solo shot over the left field wall to pull the Catamounts within one, 6-5. The rally was halted when Jamie Swank struck out swinging.
A pair of doubles to start the sixth inning prompted a rally for the Catamounts. Stephanie Beatty began the inning with a double and Savannah Filley’s double scored Beatty for the first Western Carolina run of the game. Beth Hauser drew a walk and Tatum Hargett hit a single to load the bases for Lauren Ross who hit a two RBI double. Mendy McKenzie’s RBI single scored Hargett for the fourth run of the inning.
UNC-Wilmington exploded for six runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to snap a scoreless game. The Seahawks scored three runs with two outs and was assisted by two Western Carolina errors.
Western Carolina hurler Mendy McKenzie took the loss in the game and falls to 3-9 on the season. She recorded eight strikeouts in the game, won shy of her season-high of nine, and allowed six hits and three earned runs.
Day two of the Best Western Catamount Classic begins at 9 a.m. with UNC-Wilmington facing Radford. Western Carolina plays Detroit at 1 p.m. and Radford at 3 p.m.
SOFTBALL DROPS TWO AT CAPITAL CLASSIC
SACRAMENTO, Calif. --- The Georgia Southern softball team suffered two shutouts Friday at the Capital Classic hosted by Sacramento State.
The Eagles fell 9-0 to Iowa and 11-0 to Illinois. Both games went six innings. GSU currently stands at 10-15 on the season.
Iowa 9, Georgia Southern 0 (6 innings)
The Hawkeyes had six of their first seven batters reach base on six hits (all singles) and posted a 4-0 lead to cruise to a 9-0 win the teams’
tournament opener.
Iowa loaded the bases on three singles and scored its first run on a groundout. Another single loaded the bases and Erin Riemersma and Lindsey Digmann followed with RBI singles to chase GSU starter Melissa Laliberte (Cobourg, Ontario, Canada).
In the fifth, the Hawkeyes added an unearned run on a bases-loaded walk and posted four more in the sixth. Riemersma had another RBI hit and Stephanie Ackerson drove home two with a single.
Of Iowa’s 15 hits, just one went for extra bases, a double by Emily Nichols.
Brittney Weil (1-0) allowed three hits and struck out 11 while her counterpart, Laliberte, gave up six hits and four earned runs in 0.1 innings.
Illinois 11, Georgia Southern 0 (6 innings)
Illinois took advantage of nine GSU walks and scored nine runs in its final three at bats to break open a tight contest with an 11-0 victory.
The Illini struck for two runs in the top of the first on a solo homer by Shanna Diller and an RBI single from Sydney Lisy.
Illinois threated in the second and third innings, loading the bases with no outs in the third but GSU starter Logan Free (Sandpoint, Idaho) pitched out of the jam with two strikeouts and a fielder’s choice.
The dam finally broke in the fourth when Illinois broke through for four runs, scoring twice on an RBI single by Lana Armstrong and adding two more on passed balls.
A sacrifice fly accounted for an unearned run in the fifth and two two-run homers by the Illini in the sixth wrapped up the scoring.
Ashley Wright (4-5) did not walk a batter and gave up just three hits.
Free (5-6) settled for the loss. She allowed five hits and five earned runs in 3.2 innings of work.
The Eagles continue play Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PDT against defending Big XII champion Kansas.