Furman 9, Eastern Kentucky 2
Auburn, Ala. -- Furman’s Stephanie Cushing and Stephanie Field combined for seven RBIs as the Paladins downed the Eastern Kentucky Colonels 9-2 in the opening game of the 2009 Auburn Tiger Invitational softball tournament Friday morning at Jane B. Moore Field.
Cushing, the Paladins’ senior shortstop, lined a two-run homer over the centerfield wall in the bottom of the first to stake Furman to a 2-0 lead.
Field, a freshman from Sarasota, Fla., keyed the Paladins five-run fourth inning with a two-out, three-run double to put Furman ahead 6-0 and Cushing followed with a double to right to plate Field and up the lead to 7-0.
Centerfielder Meredith Mielke and Field each added RBI singles in the bottom of the fifth to cap the scoring for the Paladins who totaled nine hits in the victory.
Field went 2-for-4 with four RBIs while Cushing collected a double, homer and three RBIs.
Mielke, Furman’s leadoff hitter, set the table drawing three walks and delivering an RBI single in four trips to the plate.
Junior Lana Mackey improved to 2-0 in the circle allowing only two runs on five hits while fanning seven Colonels in a complete-game effort. The Perry, Ga., native issued just one walk and faced only two batters over the minimum in her second outing of the season.
Pam Webber supplied the only offense for Eastern Kentucky with a two-run homer in the top half of the fifth inning. Webber went 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Brittany Mockbee (0-1) allowed seven runs on five hits and four walks over 3.2 innings of work in the circle to absorb the loss for EKU.
Furman (2-1) returns to tournament action tonight at 6:30 p.m. ET when it faces Sun Belt Conference member Western Kentucky. The Paladins take on Morehead State on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. before concluding tournament play on Sunday at 10 a.m. against the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Furman late game postponed
Auburn, Ala. -- The Furman softball team’s 6:30 p.m. ET contest against Western Kentucky at the Auburn Tiger Invitational on Friday night has been postponed until 10 a.m. ET on Saturday due to steady rains in the Auburn, Ala., area.
Furman, 2-1 on the season, opened the day with a 9-2 triumph over Eastern Kentucky in the opening game of the tournament. Senior Stephanie Cushing and freshman Stephanie Field combined to drive in four runs and junior righthander Lana Mackey fanned seven batters to improve to 2-0 in the circle.
Following Saturday morning’s matchup against the Hilltoppers, the Paladins are scheduled to take on Morehead State at 6:30 p.m. before concluding tournament play on Sunday at 10 a.m. against the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Kent State 4, Chattanooga 3; No. 3 Arizona State 10, Chattanooga 2
TEMPE, Ariz. --- In the first day of the Littlewood Classic the Chattanooga softball team (4-5) was unable to snap its losing skid, now at four games, dropping games to Kent State and No. 3 Arizona State. The Lady Mocs fell to the Golden Flashes 4-3 and were downed 10-2 by the Sun Devils.
In the nightcap the UTC offense garnered only two hits as the Lady Mocs were stifled by ASU pitcher Megan Ellsworth. The two base hits occurred in the fourth with Chattanooga trailing 3-0. Lyndsey Stiles led off the inning with an infield single to break up Ellsworth’s no-hitter. Michelle Fuzzard would come up two batters later and belt a one-out two-run home run to cut the lead to 3-2.
That would be all for the Lady Mocs’ offense however as the Sun Devil offense pulled away with seven more runs to give ASU its second victory over UTC in as many nights.
Fuzzard (0-1) was tagged with the loss, giving up 10 runs, eight earned, and striking out seven.
In the Lady Mocs’ game against Kent State, UTC jumped on the Golden Flashes early with three runs in the second. The inning began with a Toni Hutchison single into centerfield. A Brittany Eason sacrifice bunt advanced Hutchison to second before Tia Blosser singled to put runners at the corners. Hutchison scored the game’s first run thanks to a Kent State passed ball.
The Lady Mocs would continue the inning with two straight walks to Jessica Traxler and pinch-hitter Jenni Martin when Lyndsey Stiles brought in Blosser on a fielder’s choice. Kent State’s pitchers aided UTC again with walks to the next two batters, bringing in one more run to push the lead to 3-0.
Kent State would score a lone run in the bottom of the third with a RBI single by Holly Finchum to cut the lead to 3-1.
After a scoreless fourth and fifth for the Lady Mocs, KSU began to make its comeback in the bottom half of the fifth. The inning began with a pitching change, which sent Kaity Holloway to the circle for UTC. Leah Archual led off the inning with a single to left field and was able to advance to second on a Chattanooga error. A passed ball advanced the runner to third before scoring on a third strike wild pitch.
With a runner on first, Jessica Carmichael sent a long drive that hit the top of the left-centerfield wall for a stand-up triple, which tied the game at three. Irwin reentered the game with no outs and a runner on third and was able to retire the next three Golden Flashes batters to avoid any further damage.
The Lady Mocs offense continued to struggle however, as the team was unable to scratch any runs across in the sixth and seventh. In the bottom half of the seventh, Archual led off with a double and was then sacrificed to third by Finchum. Carmichael would then end the game with a single to right field, giving KSU the 4-3 win. Irwin (2-3) took the loss for the Lady Mocs.
Chattanooga will resume play in the Littlewood Classic on Saturday, Feb. 14 with contests against Illinois State and Idaho State. The first game will be at 11 a.m. ET against Illinois State, with the next game immediately following. Live stats will be available for both games at GoMocs.com.
George Mason 7, Western Carolina 1; No. 25 Kansas 7, Western Carolina 6
ORLANDO, Fla. ? Western Carolina softball (0-2) dropped a tight game, 7-6, to No. 25 Kansas in the night cap of the first day of the UCF Tournament Friday. The Catamounts opened the 2009 season with a 7-1 loss to George Mason.
The Catamounts led the contest, 6-4, heading into the top of the seventh inning but Kansas scored three unanswered runs to take a one run lead headed into the bottom of the seventh. With one out Western Carolina’s Kristen Gay drew walk to place the tying run on first base but Kerri Burnside ground out and Gay was caught stealing to end the game and the Catamount threat.
After Kansas took an early 1-0 lead to start the , Western Carolina quickly answered with three runs in the bottom of the first. Gay and Burnside led off the inning with back-to-back singles and Gay scored the first Catamount run when Amber Hawkins reached on a Jayhawk error. With one out, a sacrifice fly by Mollie Fowler plated Burnside for the second run of the inning. Beth Hauser’s triple notched her an RBI and scored Hawkins for the third Catamount run of the inning.
Kansas cut the Catamount lead to two when it scored a run in the top of the second inning. Western Carolina scored its fourth run of the game when Chelsea Schaffer reached on a Jayhawk error and then scored when Burnside reached on second Kansas error of the inning.
The Jaywaks notched runs in the third inning and the sixth inning to battle back and tie the game at four.
Western Carolina rallied to take the lead again when it scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Hawkins drew a lead-off walk and then senior Stephanie Beatty singled to place runners at first and second. Fellow senior Mollie Fowler singled up the middle to score Hawkins for her second RBI of the game. Hauser followed with a sacrifice fly to score Beatty.
Senior Lauren Ross tossed a complete game and picked up the loss. She allowed 11 hits, four earned runs and struck out three. Gay led the club going 2-for-3 with a run scored.
In the first game of the 2009 season, Western Carolina committed six errors and fell to George Mason 7-1. Freshman southpaw Katie King got her first start as a Catamount and took the loss. She went four innings giving up four hits, and although six runs were scored during her time on the mound, King did not have an earned run charged against her. King also struck out three. Cullowhee native Megan Taylor saw three innings in the game and allowed two hits and one run.
Western Carolina was facing a shutout until the bottom of the seventh inning when the club scored a run. Hauser led off the seventh reaching first on a George Mason error. With two outs, Gay hit an RBI single to score Hauser.
Western Carolina returns to action Saturday facing Villanova at 9.a.m. and Bradley at 1 p.m. in the second day of action at the UCF Tournament.
UNC Greensboro 4, UNC Wilmington 0; UNC Greensboro 3, Charlotte 2
CHARLOTTE, NC ? Senior Hannah Angel threw a one-hitter as UNC Greensboro topped UNC Wilmington 4-0 on Friday to open play at the Green and White Classic, then scored the winning run as a pinch-runner as UNCG topped tournament host Charlotte 3-2 in eight innings later in the day.
Freshman Jordan Jewett went a combined 5-for-7 with her first two career multiple-hit games, while classmate Alex Emeterio hit her first career home run in the win over the Seahawks as the Spartans (4-3) earned a first-day sweep at the tournament.
With the score tied at 2 after seven innings against the 49ers (1-1), Whitney Sirois was placed at second base via the international tiebreaker rule to start the eighth. Angel came in to pinch-run for Sirois, and Jewett laid down a textbook bunt single to move her over. Charlotte third baseman Lorena Vela overthrew first trying to get Jewett, and Angel came around with the go-ahead run.
UNCG junior Amber Harrell (1-2) worked a 1-2-3 eighth to pick up her first win of the season.
In game one, Angel allowed just a one-out single in the first inning against UNCW (1-2) in throwing her second straight shutout and improving to 3-0 in the season. After Katie Houmard struck out swinging to lead off the game, Jesse Gunter singled to left center. That would be the last UNCW hit of the contest, however, as Angel allowed just three walks the rest of the way. She retired the side in order in the second, third and seventh innings.
The Spartans got on the board in the bottom of the second, working a little two-out magic. After Seahawks starter Amanda Aditays got a groundout and a strikeout to lead off the inning, Kristen Gabel and Leslie Furness hit back-to-back doubles to bring in Gabel with UNCG’s first run. Jewett followed with a single to center, and Brittany Ausley brought in Furness with another double ? the Spartans’ fourth straight hit.
Emeterio’s blast to lead off the third knocked Aditays (0-2) from the game, and the Spartans added another run in the fourth when Emeterio’s bases-loaded walk brought in Jewett.
Gabel, Furness and Jewett ? UNCG’s 7, 8 and 9 hitters ? all went 2-for-3 in the game.
Angel struck out six and lowered her ERA on the season to 1.30.
In game two, the Spartans struck quickly against Charlotte, getting a sacrifice fly from Mary Catherine Vercoe to plate Ausley in the top of the first. Lyndsay Mouse’s RBI double in the fourth scored Jewett to put UNCG up 2-0, and Harrell was rolling, allowing just four base-runners through the first five innings.
The 49ers would even the score in the sixth, however, taking advantage of a UNCG defensive miscue for their only runs of the game. Whitney Williams reached on an error by third baseman Whitney Miller to lead off the inning, and Serena Smith followed her with a home run to knot the score. Harrell would avoid further damage, however, allowing just a lone walk the rest of the game.
For the Spartans, game two of the afternoon was nearly a lesson in missed opportunities. UNCG left 13 runners on base ? at least one in every inning but the seventh ? and left the bases loaded twice.
UNCG got back-to-back one-out singles from Sirois and Jewett and a walk from Ausley in the top of the second, but Charlotte starter Emily Jeffery struck out the next two batters to escape unscathed.
The Spartans loaded the bases again in the sixth inning, but Jeffery induced a lineout from Kaitlin Merkt to end that threat, as well.
Jewett finished the game 3-for-4 with a run scored, while seven other Spartans accounted for UNCG’s other seven hits. Smith was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI for the 49ers. Tenaya Tucker had Charlotte’s only other hit on the afternoon with her leadoff single in the fifth.
Harrell struck out seven and allowed just one earned run on three hits and three walks in eight solid innings. Jeffery fell to 0-1, allowing three runs ? two earned ? on 10 walks and four hits. She struck out nine in eight innings of work.
The Spartans will take on Army at 10:30 a.m. Saturday before pool play of the Green and White Classic begins in the afternoon.
Troy 6, Georgia Southern 0; Troy 7, Georgia Southern 4
STATESBORO, Ga. ? Troy sweeps Georgia Southern softball on opening day at Eagle Field Friday. Troy won game one 6-0 and game two 7-4.
The day began with a ribbon cutting celebrating the newly renovated Eagle Field.
Game One
Troy batted around in the first inning and scored five runs off four hits enroute to a 6-0 win in game one of the opening day doubleheader.
“Their pitcher had a really good rise ball and a change-up. They are both hard to lay off of, and we didn’t make the adjustment until about the fifth inning. Then we started to hit the ball a little bit, but it was too late then,” said head coach Maggie Johnson.
Ashlyn Williams was perfect the first time through the order, but freshman Hannah Ennis (Snellville, Ga.) doubled to left field to start the fourth inning breaking up her no-hit bid.
“She has been hitting the ball since day one in the fall. We had to put her in the outfield in order to get her bat in the lineup. She has great instincts in the outfield,” stated Johnson. “She has a great eye at the plate and hits the ball consistently.”
Nina Iduate (Norcross, Ga.) followed Ennis with a single giving Georgia Southern two runners on base with no outs; however, Williams got Amanda Hall (Haddock, Ga.) to pop out to second and struck out Jenny Side (Loganville, Ga.) and Mackenzie Williams (Baxley, Ga.) to end the inning.
Freshmen Marie Fogle (Rincon, Ga.), Ennis and Mackenzie Williams made the first starts of their careers.
Game Two
Troy scored three runs in the first inning and three in the second to win 7-4 in game two of the opening day doubleheader.
“We came out confident but let it slip away,” said Johnson. “It is about intensity and keeping it up from inning one to inning seven.”
Hall had a stellar second game going three for four with two RBIs.
“She is one of the most competitive girls out there,” said Johnson. “She is one of those players that really hates to lose.”
Troy and Georgia Southern both had three run first innings. Ennis doubled to lead off the game. Robyne Siliga (Oceanside, Calif.) followed her with a one-out single. Hall drove both runs in with a two RBI single, and Side followed with a RBI single of her own to tie the game at three runs each.
Troy opened the second inning with three straight singles before Kala Moore got caught stealing for the first out of the inning. Nikki Hollett cleared the bases with a two-out homerun to give the Trojans a 6-3 advantage in the early going.
Both teams scored a run in the sixth inning to make the score 7-4. Sam Russo (Snellville, Ga.) hit a solo shot over the head of the left fielder for her first homerun of the season.
Brianna Streetmon (Winder, Ga.) came on in relief in the third and pitched five innings, walking none.
Georgia Southern returns to action Sunday at Eagle Field against Mercer.
First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. Troy and Mercer are scheduled to play a doubleheader at Eagle Field Saturday at 1 p.m.
Miami (OH) 4, Appalachian State 3; Florida State 6, Appalachian State 0
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.- Katie Boyd (Walkertown, N.C./North Forsyth) became the first ASU softball player to hit two home runs in a game twice, but the Mountaineers lost to Miami (Ohio) and Florida State to open the season at the Sunshine Classic.
Appalachian got behind 3-0 in the first three innings as Miami scored two unearned runs to take the early lead. With two outs in the top of the fourth, Boyd drilled a home run to left field to make the score 3-1.
In the sixth inning, Andrea McIntyre (Christiansburg, Va./Tallahassee CC) got things started with a walk, bringing up Boyd who this time sent one over the center field fence to tie the game at three. Miami retook the lead in the bottom half of the inning on an RBI groundout Daniela Torres.
The Mountaineers did not go quietly in the final inning, as Ashley Gaston (Alpharetta, Ga./Roswell) and Megan Rembielak (Advance, N.C./Bishop McGuinnes) put together back-to-back singles, but a groundout and a popup ended the comeback.
Ashley Stubbs (Balm, Fla./Newsome) pitched the entire game for the Mountainers, allowing just two earned runs, while giving up nine hits and walking two with one strikeout. Both of Stubbs' walks came in the final inning. Boyd scored two runs and drove in all three ASU runs.
Appalachian had a hit in all but two innings against Florida State, but couldn't get anyone across as two Seminole pitchers combined for the shutout. Sarah Rappe (Charlotte, N.C./Butler) and Rembielak had two hits apiece while Boyd and Ashley Gaston had the other two ASU hits.
Florida State got on the board with single runs in the second and fourth innings and added two more in both the sixth and seventh innings.
The Mountaineers' best chance to score was in the second inning. Stephanie Long drew a two-out walk and was followed with singles by Rembielak and Ashley Gaston to load the bases, but Florida State got a groundout to end the threat..
ASU takes on Purdue tomorrow at 10 a.m. and Mississippi State at 4:45 p.m.
Cleveland State 7, Elon 0
ATHENS, GA. ? The Elon Phoenix softball team fell to Cleveland State 7-0 in the season opener at the Red and Black Showcase hosted by the University of Georgia.
Freshman Erin O’Shea picked up the loss, allowing five runs on 10 hits in five innings of work. O’Shea walked three batters and struck out three. Amanda Macenko earned the win, allowing just one hit in seven innings of work. She registered nine strikeouts and three walks.
Cleveland State got on top early, scoring two runs in the second inning. Natalie Dematteis reached on a walk that was followed by a double off the bat of Megan Bashak. With two on, Andrea Nagy belted a double that scored the runners and gave Cleveland State a 2-0 lead.
Elon had its first baserunner of the afternoon when Jackie Gonzalez drew a walk. She would be left stranded, as the inning would end when Jaimie Rao grounded into a double play.
The offense kept coming for the Vikings as they added two more runs in the top of the fifth to make it a 5-0 game. Ciminelli reached on a fielders’ choice and would advance to second after Dematteis singled to left field. Ciminelli crossed the plate fro CSU’s fourth run on a single by Bashak. Dematteis scored a play later when Nagy doubled to right centerfield. Erin O’Shea got Young to fly out to leftfield to end the inning with two runners left on base.
The Phoenix looked to threaten in the bottom of the fifth when O’Shea drove the ball into centerfield for a one-out single and Elon’s first hit of the day. Kaitlyn Piazzolla drew a walk that advanced O’Shea to second. Neither would cross home as the final Phoenix batter of the inning popped up to third.
Cleveland State added its final two runs in the seventh inning. Ciminelli scored on a RBI single to centerfield by Bashak. Christa Coppus smacked a two-out single to center that scored Dematteis. DelPizzo got the final Viking batter to fly out to center to end the inning with two left on base.
In its final at bat, the Phoenix could not muster a run despite a single by Lauren Taylor. She would be left stranded as the O’Shea lined out to third and Lafferty struck out swinging.
Elon returns to action tomorrow morning when it faces Winthrop at 10 a.m. on day two of the Red and Black Showcase hosted by Georgia. Elon will face the Bulldogs later in the afternoon at 4 p.m. Live stats and full coverage of the games will be available at www.elonphoenix.com.
Akron 4, College of Charleston 1
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Senior outfielder Amber Lowe went 2-for-3 with four RBIs as Akron (3-2) defeated the College of Charleston (1-3) 4-1 in the fourth game of the 2009 Cougar Classic in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina.
After a scoreless top of the first inning, Charleston took advantage in the bottom half of the frame with back-to-back singles by senior outfielder Tiffany Harmon (Lynn Haven, Fla.) and redshirt junior second baseman Amber Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.). Following a ground out, senior pitcher Shannon Howard (Carmichael, Calif.) then laced an RBI single through the left side to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead.
The score would stay that way for the next three innings as both pitchers settled in. In the top of the fifth inning, back-to-back Zip singles set the stage for a two-run double by Amber Lowe to make it 2-1 Akron.
The Zips would add a pair of insurance runs in the top of the seventh inning when Lowe struck again, this time with a single up the middle that brought home two more runs, giving Akron a 4-1 lead. That would be all they would need as freshman pitcher Andrea Arney recorded a pair of strikeouts and a groundout in the bottom of the inning to lock up the three-run victory.
Lowe led the way for the Zips with her four RBIs and a double while senior outfielder Lisa McLean went 2-for-4 with a run. On the rubber, Arney went the distance, allowing five hits and the one run to collect the victory.
For the College of Charleston, Harmon finished the game 2-for-4 while Howard was 1-for-3 with her RBI single. Howard took the loss for the Cougars as she allowed four runs, three earned, in 6.1 innings. Senior shortstop Christal Kotchman (Seminole, Fla.) finished 1-for-3 with a career-high nine assists. That mark tied for the second-highest single game performance and was one away from tying the record of 10 by Heather Driggers on April 15, 1994 against Florida International
The Cougars return to action with their second game of the day when they take on Syracuse at 6:00 p.m.
Syracuse 1, College of Charleston 0
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Senior catcher Amy Kelley lead off the bottom of the seventh inning with a homerun to straightaway centerfield Syracuse (3-1) defeated the College of Charleston (1-4) in the fifth game of the 2009 Cougar Classic in Mt. Pleasant, S.C.
A pitchers duel from the very beginning, neither team could put together a sustained rally as Syracuse was the only one to notch a multi-hit inning. The Orange got back-to-back singles from senior outfielder Jorden Rosen and senior infielder Lindsay Wasek at the start of the third inning before the Cougars recorded three straight outs to end the threat.
Charleston managed solo hits in the first, third and fifth innings, with senior outfielder Tiffany Harmon (Lynn Haven, Fla.) collecting two of them. Sophomore outfielder Kristi Woodall (Huntersville, N.C.) singled up the middle with two outs in the fifth for the only other Cougar hit.
CofC’s defense remained solid, however, as they held Syracuse scoreless entering the bottom of the seventh inning. At that point, Kelley then drilled the first pitch she saw over the centerfield fence to give the Orange a 1-0, walk off victory.
Junior pitcher Brittany Gardner pitched a complete game with a game-high eight strikeouts to get the victory for Syracuse while Kelley provided the only offense of the game with her solo home run. Senior shortstop Jamie Kelling, Rosen and Wasek recorded the only other hits for the Orange.
Tiffany Harmon led the Cougars as she went 2-for-3 on the day while Woodall added the only other hit. Junior pitcher Terri Mesko (McDonough, Ga.) took the loss as she threw six innings, struck out six batters and allowed only four hits and the one run.
The Cougars will be back in action tomorrow morning when they take on East Tennessee State at 10:00 a.m.