Furman 5, Appalachian State 3
Appalachian State 4, Furman 0
GREENVILLE, S.C. - A five-run first inning propelled Furman to a 5-3 victory in game one and Hannah Dow tossed a three-hit shutout for Appalachian State in game two as the Paladins and Mountaineers split a Southern Conference doubleheader on Friday afternoon at Pepsi Stadium.
Mackey (7-6) scattered seven hits and allowed just three runs in a complete game effort to earn the victory in game one. The senior from Perry, Ga., walked seven batters, but fanned 11 to become the school's all-time strikeouts leader with 645. She passed Kim Currier who recorded 640 career punchouts from 1991-94.
Appalachian State took a quick 2-0 lead on the Paladins on Katie Boyd's two-run homer to left in the top half of the first inning, but the Paladins answered with a five-spot in the bottom of the frame. The SoCon's leading hitter, Stephanie Field, laced a leadoff single up the middle and Katie Michaels reached base when her sacrifice bunt was misplayed. After Jessie Homesley walked to load the bases, Morgan Hughey delivered an RBI single and Mackey laced a two-run single back up the middle to give Furman a 3-2 lead. A bases loaded walk by Alex Bimonte and RBI groundout by Taylor Beam capped the five-run outburst.
Mackey worked out of trouble several times over the next six innings stranding 10 Mountaineers on base on her way to her fourth SoCon win of the season. Field went 2-for-3 with a base on balls to pace the Paladins' seven-hit attack.
Right-hander Caitlin Wainright suffered the loss for ASU to fall to 8-5 on the season. She allowed five runs, three earned, on seven hits over six innings of work. Boyd belted the two-run homer in her only official at bat and drew three walks. Sarah Rappe and Megan Rembielak each collected two hits for Appalachian.
In game two, Dow (4-5) held Furman to three hits and fanned seven batters without issuing a walk to lead the Mountaineers to a 4-0 victory that snapped the Paladins' 10-game home winning streak against SoCon opponents.
Appalachian State totaled three runs in the top half of the first. The Mountaineers loaded the bases with nobody out before McKenzie Phillips delivered an RBI single and Michelle Lighton batted in a pair of runs. Allie Cashion added an insurance run with an RBI double in the top of the sixth inning.
Rappe went 3-for-5 for ASU while Rembielak, Phillips and Dow each collected two hits. The Mountaineers stranded 14 runners on base.
Freshman Kayla Suskauer (2-3) suffered the defeat for Furman. The Tampa, Fla., product allowed four runs on 12 hits over seven innings. She walked seven batters and fanned two.
Furman (10-12, 6-4 SoCon) and Appalachian State (16-13, 5-5) conclude their series on Saturday afternoon. First pitch for the rubber game of the series is set for 1 p.m.
Most Furman home games and selected road contests will be available via GameTracker. Fans can follow Furman action by logging onto www.furmanpaladins.com and following the links on the athletics schedule or by surfing to the Furman softball page.
College of Charleston 10, Samford 2
College of Charleston 4, Samford 0
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - Senior designated hitter Kristie Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.) went 4-for-4 with three runs and an RBI while junior outfielder Kristi Woodall (Huntersville, N.C.) finished 3-for-4 with three runs and two RBIs as the College of Charleston (13-16, 3-4) earned a pair of league victories over Samford (10-21, 1-10) on Friday, April 2 at Patriots Point Stadium. The Cougars notched a five-inning 10-2 victory in Game 1 before posting a 4-0 decision in the nightcap.
CofC jumped out ahead early as an RBI single by Kristie Shifflett and a sacrifice fly from sophomore third baseman Kelley Dillon (Hanahan, S.C.) made it 2-0 in the first inning. Redshirt-junior catcher Katie Pesature (Brewster, N.Y.) kept the offense going in the second as her lead-off homerun helped to key a four-run inning that left the Cougars with a 6-0 advantage. In that frame, the Cougars picked up a second run on a wild pitch before Dillon doubled home two more runs.
The Bulldogs would notch their only scores of the game in the third as redshirt-freshman catcher Alex Adams belted her team-leading sixth homerun of the season to close to within 6-2. That would be not only the only runs they would get, but the last hit as well as junior pitcher Alexa Datko (San Diego, Calif.) set down the final six batters in order.
The College of Charleston added three more runs in the fourth as Woodall produced an RBI single and sophomore outfielder Katie Forbes (Odessa, Fla.) laced a two-run double to make it 9-2. Junior shortstop Hillary Stringer (Summerville, S.C.) then walked to lead off the fifth, stole her second base of the season and then scored the game-winning run on another single by Woodall.
Adams went 2-for-2 with two RBIs and a run scored on her sixth homerun to lead Samford while sophomore second baseman Amy Gonzalez had the only other hit for the Bulldogs. Senior Stephanie Royall started and went 1.2 innings, allowing six runs, four earned, to take the loss and fall to 5-4.
Woodall's career-high night, featuring a 3-for-4, three run, two-RBI performance led the Cougars while Kelley Dillon went 2-for-2 with a double and career-high three RBIs. For Woodall, the three hits tied her career mark while the three runs scored was a first. Redshirt-senior second baseman Amber Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.) went 3-for-3 with two runs and a pair of stolen bases as she tied her season-high for hits and steals and her sister Kristie Shifflett finished 2-for-2 with two runs, an RBI and a walk.
Pesature's fourth homerun of the season accounted for one RBI while Forbes tied her season best with two RBIs on a double. Datko pitched all five innings for her eighth complete game of the season and allowed only two runs while striking out four. She improves to 4-7 on the season.
It was a much different game in the nightcap but the College of Charleston still managed to put up a pair of runs in the first inning. Following two-out singles by Kristie Shifflett and Dillon, sophomore outfielder Amanda Lonergan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) drove a ball to the left centerfield gap that fell for a double and scored both runners. The score would stay at 2-0 until the fourth inning when Lonergan made it 3-0 on her fourth homerun of the season, launching a ball to right center that bounced on top of the fence. With a runner on third and two outs, Stringer came through again, this time lacing an RBI double that made it 4-0.
The Bulldogs had three hits through three innings thanks to the pitching of senior pitcher Terri Mesko (McDonough, Ga.) who did not allow another hit until the sixth. She worked around a two-out, sixth inning double by Gonzalez and then allowed a one out single in the seventh before closing out the victory with back-to-back outs.
Senior third baseman Katie England went 2-for-3 for Samford and Gonzalez, senior first baseman Amanda Barrs and senior left fielder Rachael Reeves each had one hit. Freshman pitcher Emily Waters pitched three innings, allowing all four runs, to take the loss and drop to 1-1 in only her second appearance of the season.
Lonergan's 2-for-3 night that included a career-high tying three RBIs and her fourth homerun of the season, led the College of Charleston. Stringer delivered the other RBI in a 1-for-3 night while Kristie Shifflett finished 2-for-2 with a run and her second walk of the evening. Mesko pitched a masterful game, going seven innings and allowing no runs, only five hits and striking out six batters. She picked up the win and improved to 5-6 on the season.
The College of Charleston goes for the series sweep tomorrow afternoon when they take on the Bulldogs in Game 3 at 1 p.m.
NOTES
The five-inning win in Game 1 marked the third straight such game for the Cougars following a pair of shortened victories over South Carolina State ... Lonergan's three RBIs tie her career-high, accomplished three times, all this season ... she last drove in three against St. Bonaventure on March 3 ... Dillon's three RBIs in the nightcap are a career-high ... Woodall's three hits tie her career-best, done four times previously ... the last time was on March 30 of this year at South Carolina State.
Elon 2, UNC Greensboro 1
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Tomeka Watson's two-run single in the top of the seventh inning lifted Elon to a 2-1, come-from-behind win over the UNC Greensboro Spartans in Southern Conference softball action on Friday afternoon in Greensboro, N.C.
Ashlee Crewe opened the seventh inning with a walk. With two away, Jackie Gonzalez sent a pitch up the middle and advanced to second on a throwing error by UNCG centerfielder Laura Olenderski. With two outs and runners at second and third, Watson drove the first pitch she saw through the left side, scoring both Crewe and Gonzalez.
The Spartans had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh after Brittany Ausley singled up the middle with two outs. The Spartans couldn't push her across as Elon hurler Lauren Taylor caught Katie Stripley swinging to seal the win.
UNCG struck first when Kaitlin Merkt hit a solo home run over the center field wall in the bottom of the second inning to provide the only Spartan run.
Graham was hit by a pitch to lead off the top of the fourth and moved all the way to third base on a sacrifice bunt by Erin O'Shea. UNCG's Cory Mattson set down the next two batters, leaving Graham stranded at third.
A double, a hit by pitch and a walk loaded the bases with two outs for the Spartans in the bottom of the fourth inning. O'Shea worked herself out of the jam when she got Whitney Sirois to fly out to the warning track in left field
Watson picked up Elon's second hit of the game with a bunt single in the top of the sixth. She moved to third one batter later when Graham found the gap at short. The pair would not advance further as the next three batters were retired on a pair of fly outs and a strikeout.
After surrendering a leadoff double to Eileen Horsman in the bottom of the sixth, Taylor settled in and fanned the next three batters in order to end any threat of a Spartan run.
Taylor earned the win to improve to 10-3 on the season. She scattered just two hits and struck out four batters in three scoreless innings of relief. In four innings of work, O'Shea surrendered just one run on three hits and two walks. She also struck out three Spartan batters.
Mattson suffered the loss for UNCG, giving up two runs on five hits and a pair of walks. She also fanned nine Elon hitters.
The Phoenix and the Spartans will play a doubleheader tomorrow afternoon beginning at 1 p.m.
Chattanooga 7, Western Carolina 5
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - A two-run go ahead single from senior Kaiti Kelley (Chattanooga, Tenn.) in the sixth inning helped seal the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga softball team's comeback 7-5 triumph over Western Carolina. Senior Tia Blosser (Knoxville, Tenn.) lead the way going 3-for-4 at the plate with a double and two RBI as the Lady Mocs overcame a five-run deficit after four.
"I felt like they intentionally walked Lyndsey Stiles just to get an easy situation for their defense," said Kelley after the game-winning single. "I knew then that I was going to prove them wrong. They were trying to make an easy play because they expected a slapper to hit the ball into the dirt, and only in the dirt. Typically I hit closer toward the middle, so all they were going to do was tag second. I used it as motivation stepping up to the plate."
Staring in the circle for Chattanooga (24-9, 7-0 SoCon) was senior Brooke Loudermilk (Locust Grove, Ga.) going 3.1 innings, giving up six hits and five runs, only one of them earned, and striking out five. Junior Kandice Irwin (Knoxville, Tenn.) came in and shut the door on Western Carolina (4-23, 0-9 SoCon) only yielding three hits while striking out five to finish the contest.
Scoring the first run of the game was Chelsea Shaffer for the Catamounts coming in on a groundout by Jordan Fulton. WCU followed it up with four runs in the fourth thanks to four errors committed by the Lady Mocs in the frame to take a 5-0 lead.
"There is a difference in coming to play and being your best every day, and I am just stumped on what I need to do to get the girls to step up," said head coach Frank Reed. "I'm not sure what buttons to push. Sometimes, I don't have to push any buttons at all. All I know is that we need some of the upperclassmen to step up and challenge the team."
UTC's bats came alive in the fifth inning beginning with senior Lynleigh Hurndon's (McDonough, Ga.) bloop single into the outfield down the first base line. Freshman Kasey Tydingco (Fairfield, Calif.) followed with a double over the right fielder's head to advance Hurndon to third.
On a 0-2 pitch, junior Lyndsey Stiles (Hixson, Tenn.) beat out a groundball to the shortstop driving in Hurndon and advancing Tydingco to third. On the next pitch, Stiles stole second base and advanced to third on a passed ball, which also allowed Tydingco to score the second run for Chattanooga.
Two batters later, Blosser single to the second baseman allowing Stiles to cross the plate for the final run of the inning cutting Western Carolina's lead down to 5-3.
Chattanooga continued the rally in the sixth starting with junior Lauren Flores (Fort Ogelthorpe, Ga.) singling to right centerfield. Freshman Sara Poteat (Thomaston, Ga.) reached base on a fielder's choice, and was driven in by Tydingco's first career triple that the centerfielder misjudged.
"I knew that none of their pitchers could throw it by me," said Tydingco. "I knew that if they threw it close that I was going to swing hard and get on base. We needed base runners so that we could score."
After an intentional walk and the second stolen base of the game by Stiles, Kelley singled to right to drive the runners in scoring position completing the comeback as UTC took a 6-5 lead. Blosser followed with a single on the next pitch through the left side to bring home Kelley and give the Lady Mocs a two run lead.
UTC continues the holiday weekend series against the Catamounts tomorrow afternoon with a doubleheader. Game one starts at noon, with game two beginning 20 minutes after the end of game one. Also, fans of the Chattanooga softball team are welcomed to attend "Breakfast with Coach" at Wally's Restaurant beginning at 8:30 a.m. where assistant coach Brad Irwin will be the featured speaker during the interactive event.