Samford 7, Appalachian State 0
Appalachian State 5, Samford 1
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford softball team split a doubleheader with Appalachian State Sunday in the final day of the season's first Southern Conference series at Bulldog Field. The Bulldogs shut out the Mountaineers in the first game before falling 5-1 in extra innings in the second game.
Samford (8-10, 1-2 SoCon) bounced back from a 5-2 loss to Appalachian State (11-7, 2-1 SoCon) on Saturday after a long day of rain delays and frigid temperatures. The Bulldogs took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning before adding two more each in the third, fifth and sixth innings to win the first game of the day, 7-0.
With two outs in the bottom of the first inning, Amanda Barrs and Alex Adams walked to set up a scoring opportunity. Amanda Jordan then singled to score Barrs and get the Bulldogs on the board.
In the third inning, the Bulldogs loaded the bases before the Mountaineers could record the first out of the inning. Still with no outs, Adams singled to the shortstop to allow Amy Gonzalez and Katie England to score and put the Bulldogs up 3-0. The Mountaineers then brought in Frannie Seader to pitch before retiring the next three batters.
Samford then took a 5-0 lead in the third inning after Barrs set up the scoring opportunity on a lead-off double. Tessa Frates walked to put runners on first and second before Anna Kimbrell singled to right field to score Barrs. Aaren Fisher then singled through the left side to score Frates before Seader struck out Kayla Shaffer looking to end the inning.
The Bulldogs tacked on their sixth and seventh runs in the sixth inning when England doubled after Gonzalez walked to lead-off the inning. Gonzalez scored from first base when England advanced to third on the throw from right center. After Barrs grounded out to record the first out of the inning, Adams singled to bring England home to make the score 7-0.
Stephanie Royall (5-2) pitched the complete game and her first shutout of the year. She gave up just three hits and walked three batters while striking out one. England, Adams and Fisher each had two hits while Gonzalez, Barrs, Jordan and Kimbrell each had one. Adams had three of Samford's seven RBI while Gonzalez, Jordan, Kimbrell and Fisher all had one each.
"Stephanie (Royall) did a nice job and kept them off balance all day," Samford Head Coach Beanie Ketcham said. "And obviously we hit their pitcher pretty well. Overall on the weekend, I was pleased. I thought we got three quality starts out of (Robyn) Harmon, (Amanda) Barrs and (Stephanie) Royall. That is a really good sign for us."
Hannah Dow pitched two innings for the Mountaineers before being relieved by Frannie Seader. Dow (2-4) took the loss, giving up three earned runs on four hits. Seader struck out four batters and walked three and gave up four earned runs on six hits in four innings. Sarah Rappe, Michelle Lighton, and Hayley Grabner each had a hit for ASU.
In the second game, the Mountaineers scored right out of the gate to take a 1-0 lead. After getting two runners on, the Bulldogs were able to turn those into outs straight away. Katie Boyd was walked and then scored from first as Allie Cashion singled and advance to third on a long throw from left field.
Samford answered back in the second inning with a lead-off home run by Adams to tie the game. The teams would play five more scoreless innings before the Mountaineers tacked on four in the top of the eight to take a 5-1 lead on a grand slam by Lighton.
Amanda Barrs (1-5) took the loss for the Bulldogs, pitching seven full innings and striking out four batters before being relieved by Kayla Burris in the eighth inning. She also gave up four earned runs on 11 hits and walked three batters. Gonzalez, Adams, Jordan and Kimbrell each had a hit for the Bulldogs while Adams was credited with the RBI.
Caitlin Wainright (6-2) earned the win for the Mountaineers, pitching a complete game. She struck out two batters and just one while giving up just one earned run on four hits. Megan Rembielak led ASU with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate and one run. Boyd and Cashion each had two hits while Rappe, Lighton, Phillips and Dow each had one hit.
"I thought (Amanda) Barrs pitched really well for us today," Ketcham said. "Defensively, we are just still not picking up our pitchers sometimes. We could've executed a little better in all aspects, it's not all defensive, but in a tight ballgame like that you have to make those plays. They made them and we didn't, and that was the difference in the ballgame."
The Bulldogs head out on a five-game road swing on Wednesday. The first stop for Samford is Georgia State. The Bulldogs will meet up with the Panthers at 3 p.m. on Wednesday before taking on Kennesaw State on Thursday at 2 p.m. Then Samford jumps back into conference play as they take on Furman in Greenville, S.C., with a 3 p.m., game on Friday and a doubleheader on Saturday beginning a noon.
Elon 18, Western Carolina 2
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - The Elon softball team belted five home runs, including grand slams by Danielle Lafferty and Pam DelPizzo, in an 18-2, five-inning win over Western Carolina on Sunday afternoon in Cullowhee, N.C. Lauren Taylor allowed two runs on three hits for the complete game win. Taylor is now 7-1 on the year.
The win completed a series sweep of the Catamounts and helped Elon improve to 14-4 on the season and 3-0 in Southern Conference play. Western Carolina fell to 3-15 on the year and 0-3 in league action. The 16-run margin of victory was the largest ever for the Phoenix against a Southern Conference opponent.
The Phoenix picked up where it left off yesterday, loading the bases on two hits and a walk in the top of the first. Western Carolina's Katie King issued her second walk of the game to Caitlin McGowan, which sent Kaitlyn Piazzolla home, giving Elon a 1-0 lead.
Elon used three home runs in the top of the second to take a 6-0 lead. Ashlee Crewe got things started with a home run to right field, putting Elon up 2-0. The round-tripper was Crewe's third of the weekend. After Jackie Gonzalez singled, a WCU error allowed Tomeka Watson to reach and Gonzalez to score. With a runner at third, Piazzolla collected a two-run home run that gave Elon a 5-0 lead and forced Western to make a pitching change. Emerald Graham greeted new pitcher Bekah Burkett with a solo shot to left field, resulting in a 6-0 game. The Catamounts turned a double play with the bases loaded to end the inning.
With one out in the top of the third, Gonzalez singled up the middle, but was called out at second after Watson reached on a fielder's choice. Burkett issued a pair of walks, including an intentional walk to Graham that loaded the bases with two outs. Lafferty drove a pitch over the left field wall for her second grand slam home run of the season, giving Elon a 10-0 advantage.
A walk, a single and a hit by pitch loaded the bases for the Phoenix in the top of the fourth inning. Gonzalez made it an 11-0 game when she drew a walk that scored DelPizzo. The walk forced the Catamounts to make their second pitching change of the game. A Watson single scored Crewe from third with Elon's 12th run of the game. WCU's Jordan Fulton then hit Piazzolla with a pitch and walked Graham to give Elon a 14-0 lead. With two away, Wright walked to load the bases and bring DelPizzo to the plate. Once there, she hit a no-doubter to straightaway centerfield for Elon's second grand slam of the game. The blast put Elon up 18-0.
After retiring the first 11 batters she faced, Elon's Taylor surrendered a walk to Amber Hawkins in the bottom of the fourth inning, giving the Catamounts its first base runner of the game. Taylor settled back in and retired the next batter to end the inning.
Western Carolina avoided the shutout in the bottom of the fifth inning, putting two runners on with a walk and an error. The Catamounts recorded its first hit of the game when Missy Wills singled up the middle to load the bases with no outs. With one away, Fulton and Chelsea Schaffer recorded back-to-back singles to third base that scored two runs for WCU and made it an 18-2 game. Elon turned a double play to end the inning.
King suffered the loss, falling to 0-8 on the year. She allowed three runs on five hits, including two home runs in 1.1 innings in the circle. Burkett and Fulton combined for three innings of relief, allowing 13 runs on nine hits, including three home runs.
The Phoenix will return to East Field on Wednesday afternoon when it welcomes the 18th-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. It will be the second time this season that a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference has made an appearance at East Field. Earlier this season, Elon handed Virginia a 10-8 loss.
College of Charleston 9, Coastal Carolina 4
College of Charleston 8, Coastal Carolina 0
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - Senior pitcher Terri Mesko (McDonough, Ga.) pitched a complete game one-hit shutout and sophomore third baseman Katie Forbes (Odessa, Fla.) went 3-for-7 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs on the evening as the College of Charleston (8-12) earned a double-header sweep of Coastal Carolina (8-12) in non-conference softball action at Patriots Point on Sunday, March 14.
The Cougars picked up an unearned run in the third inning of Game 1 to take a 1-0 lead before CCU answered with a pair of runs in the top of the next inning to make it 2-1. CofC then regained the lead at 3-2 in the bottom of the fourth with runs on a ground out and an RBI triple by redshirt-senior second baseman Amber Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.).
The offensive production continued as the Chanticleers notched a pair of runs with an RBI single from freshman shortstop Jazmin Daigle and a run scoring double by sophomore first baseman Stacy Snellings in the fifth to pull back ahead at 4-3.
That would be all CCU would get though as the College of Charleston exploded for six runs over the next two innings as they pounded out five hits to take a 9-4 lead. Sophomore first baseman Kelley Dillon (Hanahan, S.C.) singled home a run in the fifth while Forbes laced a double down the third base line for a second run. In the sixth, sophomore outfielder Amanda Lonergan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) had an RBI single while redshirt-junior catcher Katie Pesature (Brewster, N.Y.) accounted for the Cougars final run with a fielder's choice.
Freshman catcher Olivia Piccirillo drove home a pair of runs for Coastal Carolina while Daigle and Snellings each added an RBI. Senior pitcher Ashley Frederick pitched five innings and allowed five runs to take the loss and fall to 5-7 on the year.
Junior pitcher Kasie Meeks (Manchester, Tenn.) threw 2.1 innings of scoreless, hitless relief to earn the win for the College of Charleston as Lonergan went 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. She was joined offensively by Dillon with a 2-for-3, one-run, one RBI performance while Pesature finished with a pair of RBIs.
In the nightcap, the Cougars built a picket fence for the first three innings, notching a single run in each frame, before erupting for five runs in the fourth inning to stretch to an 8-0 lead. A Forbes RBI double accounted for the first inning run while Amber Shifflett doubled home a run the following inning. Freshman shortstop Erica Kaufman (Berkeley, S.C.) singled in the third inning run before CofC scored five runs on two hits and an error in the fifth inning.
Following that frame, Terri Mesko set down the side in order in the top of the fifth to lock up the double-header sweep for the College of Charleston. On the day, the McDonough, Ga. native threw a complete game one-hit shutout and recorded five strikeouts while issuing only two walks. The lone hit of the game came in the third inning when senior outfielder Mecaela Ballard doubled to left field.
Forbes led the Cougars production at the plate with a 2-for-3, one run, two-RBI performance while Amber Shifflett added a run, RBI and her tenth stolen base in 11 tries this season. Lonergan, Kaufman and junior first baseman Katie Nutaitis (Vienna, Va.) each added an RBI for CofC while Nutaitis notched a 2-for-2 day.
CofC will be back in action on Thursday, March 18 when they host Maryland-Eastern Shore in a double-header at Patriots Point. Game 1 is scheduled for a 4 p.m. first pitch.
NOTES
The one-hit performance is the fourth such outing of Mesko's career ... she last threw at least four innings and allowed one hit on April 26, 2008 at Chattanooga ... in that game, she allowed a hit to the second batter of the game and then retired the next 24 as she pitched a complete game, one-hit eight inning shutout.
Georgia Southern 2, UNC Greensboro 1
GREENSBORO, N.C. - UNC Greensboro scored an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh and had the tying run in scoring position, but could not complete the comeback, falling to Georgia Southern by a 2-1 count Sunday in the finale of the three-game Southern Conference series.
The Eagles' Megen Smith hit a pair of solo home runs that would prove to be the only offense GSU (13-9, 2-1 SoCon) would need.
With UNCG (8-13, 1-2 SoCon) trailing 2-0 heading into the seventh, pinch-hitter Katie Stripling got things going with an infield single to shortstop. Emily Akiyama followed with a double to the gap in left center, but Stripling was thrown out at the plate on the play.
One out later, April Langley reached on an error that allowed Akiyama to score UNCG's only run of the day. Laura Olenderski was hit by a pitch to put runners at first and second with two down, but GSU starter Brianna Streetmon got a liner to third off the bat of Brittany Ausley - with third baseman Jenny Side making a leaping, snowcone grab - to end the game.
The Eagles jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first inning, but the damage would have been worse if not for some head's up defensive play. After Nina Iduate drew a leadoff walk, Alex Emeterio charged in hard and caught Kelly Burnett's popped-up sacrifice attempt, then wheeled around and threw back to first to double off Iduate.
Smith then sent the very next pitch out to dead center, putting the Eagles up 1-0.
Smith made it a 2-0 game in the top of the fourth, hitting a leadoff homer out to left center. That would prove to be the last of GSU's three hits on the day, but it was enough.
Akiyama finished 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored to lead UNCG, while Smith was 2-for-3 with two homers and two RBI for GSU.
Streetmon improved to 8-3 on the season, allowing one run on five hits and a walk and striking out four.
UNCG starter Cory Mattson, the reigning SoCon Pitcher of the Week, saw her four-game winning streak come to an end, as she fell to 5-5 on the season. She allowed two runs on just three hits and a walk in 4 innings of work.
Mattson worked an impressive third inning, retiring the side on just three pitches. All three outs were to Ausley in left field.
Amber Harrell worked 3 innings of hitless relief to end the game.
Chattanooga 4, Furman 3
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - On an overcast day, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga softball team defeated Furman, 4-3, Sunday thanks to a four-run second inning at Frost Stadium. Keying the victory was junior Kandice Irwin (Knoxville, Tenn.) pitching a five-out save.
"I spent the entire game warming up, not knowing when I would get my chance" said closer Irwin. "I felt confident going in with being warm and I knew that I could mix my pitches. So I just went out there and pitched my game and was not worried about the score or people on base."
Chattanooga improved to 15-7 overall and 3-0 in conference play, while Furman fell to 2-6 on the season and 0-3 in the Southern Conference.
Senior Brooke Loudermilk (Locust Grove, Ga.) started the game for Chattanooga going 5.1 innings, while striking out seven and giving up three earned runs in the final two frames. She picked up her 10th win of the season.
Last night's run producer, junior Nikki Waters (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) drew a leadoff walk in the second. Senior Brittany Eason (Chattanooga, Tenn.) reached base on a sacrifice bunt attempt when the throw from the catcher pulled the second baseman off the bag.
After a walk to sophomore Jessica Traxler (Chino Hills, Calif.) to load the bases, junior Lauren Flores (Ft. Oglethorpe, Ga.) drove in the first run with an infield single that the first baseman knocked down saving at least one run for the time being. Junior Lyndsey Stiles (Hixson, Tenn.) then hit her first sacrifice fly of the season to plate the second run moving two runners into scoring position.
Senior Kati Kelley (Chattanooga, Tenn.) put the Lady Mocs up three by beating out a ground ball to the second. On the next pitch, Kelley stole her first base of the season and advanced to third when Furman's catcher threw the ball into centerfield. The errant throw allowed Flores to score giving UTC its fourth unearned run of the inning.
In the fifth inning, the Paladins scored their first run with a solo home run to left centerfield by Brythe Blankenship. Morgan Hughey followed it up in the next inning with a two-run shot over the left field fence to cut Chattanooga's lead down to one, 4-3.
With the pressure on, Irwin relieved Loudermilk and shut down Furman picking up her fifth save of the season. It was also Irwin's seventh career save. In the first at bat against Lana Mackey, the current Furman pitcher, the hard throwing right hander baffled the hitter with a change up on the second pitch.
Furman used two different pitchers in the game, with Kayla Suskauer starting, and Mackey, who came in during the second with the bases loaded.
Chattanooga returns to Frost Stadium on Tuesday with a single contest vs. Tennesee Tech at 5 p.m. The Lady Mocs play their second midweek game on Thursday against Eastern Illinois, which is a doubleheader beginning at 4 p.m.