Appalachian State 11, Elon 5
Appalachian State 4, Elon 3
BOONE, N.C .- Appalachian State University softball (9-13, 3-2 SoCon) picked up two, key Southern Conference games from Elon (13-9, 2-3 SoCon), 11-5 and 4-3 at Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium on a sunny afternoon in Boone.
ASU was making their first appearance at home after a grueling 20-game roadtrip and they did not disappoint the 100-plus fans in attendance.
In the first game between the two squads, the Mountaineers allowed the Phoenix to put up the game's first two runs in the top of the second inning after Danielle Lafferty doubled to centerfield and an throwing error by junior Caitlin Wainright brought home Lafferty and Kaitlyn Piazzolla.
The Apps answered in the bottom half of the frame, though. Senior Hannah Dow got things going with a single right back up the middle and junior Michelle Lighton grounded out, allowing Dow to move over to second base. Senior McKenzie Phillips picked up a fielder's choice in the next at-bat for the Mountaineers, but a throwing error plated Dow, moving the score to 2-1.
In the top of the third, Elon got two more runs after Caitlin McGowan got ahold of a Wainright pitch and put it over the left center fence, increasing Elon's lead to 4-1.
The Mountaineers chipped away at the lead in the bottom of the inning, picking up one more run, cutting the deficit down to 4-2.
From that point on, it was all Appalachian. In ASU's half of the fourth and sixth, the Black and Gold offense combined to tally nine runs.
The Mountaineer charge was led by sophomore Allie Cashion, who nailed a three-run shot over the left field line fence. It looked like it was going to curve foul, but Cashion got enough of it keep the pitch fair.
Junior Megan Rembielak and sophomore Meghan Smith paced ASU with three hits a piece, while senior Katie Boyd had two. Cashion finished with a career-high and team-leading four RBIs.
On the rubber, Dow came in relief of Wainright and picked up her third win of the season, moving her overall record to 3-3. Three-time SoCon Pitcher of the Week Lauren Taylor was charged with the loss, moving her record to 9-3.
In the second game, the Mountaineers did all the damage needed to hold on the victory in the first and third frames.
In the ASU half of the first inning, Boyd only needed to see one pitch from Elon's Erin O'Shea and she sent it sailing over the centerfield fence for her second home run of the season, giving Appalachian a 1-0 lead.
Heading into the third inning, Boyd walked to start off and Rembielak put down a bunt single, moving Boyd to put runners on first and second. Smith crushed a pitch to right field, but it stayed in the stadium, allowing both runners to tag up. And as she did in the first game, Cashion came up in the next Mountaineer at-bat and homered over the center field fence, giving ASU a 4-0 advantage.
But Elon responded in its half of the fifth inning, putting up three runs on five hits, leaving two on base.
Appalachian held on to the lead to allow Dow (4-3) to notch her second victory of the day, while Wainright garnered the first Mountaineer save of the season.
Cashion once again lead ASU with three RBIs, while Boyd, Rembielak, Smith and Cashion scattered four hits.
The Mountaineers return to the diamond tomorrow for the series finale at 1 p.m.
Georgia Southern 1, Western Carolina 0
Georgia Southern 6, Western Carolina 5
CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Georgia Southern (12-17, 4-1 SoCon) Softball took a doubleheader sweep over Western Carolina (13-14, 0-5 SoCon) on Saturday (March 19th) afternoon. The Eagles took the opener 1-0 as senior Brianna Streetmon went the distance for the shutout. In game two, GSU silenced a late Catamount rally to take the slender 6-5 victory. Junior Marie Fogle started both games with leadoff home runs in the first inning to catapult the Eagles to an early 1-0 lead.
-GAME 1 -
Fogle started the Georgia Southern first inning with a towering home run over the fence in centerfield. The long-ball was her league-high seventh of the season and her fourth to lead off the game.
In the fifth inning, Western Carolina was forced to make a pitching change when Tabby Douberley lined a ball up the middle and hit WCU's Katie King in the kneecap. The ball ricocheted to first base where Douberley was retired. King was replaced in the circle by Bekah Burkett.
Western Carolina put runners on first and second with one out in the bottom of the sixth off a pair of singles. Streetmon worked out of the jam to preserve the shutout with an inning left to play.
King returned for the Catamounts in the top of the seventh after Burkett walked the bases loaded with two outs in the frame. She ended the Eagle threat in the seventh as a fly out ended the inning.
In the bottom of the seventh, Streetmon retired the Catamount side in order to cement the 1-0 victory for the Eagles. She moves to 6-6 on the season and 2-1 in SoCon games. She scattered three hits and struck out six without allowing a walk.
-GAME 2-
Fogle started game two in style with a home run to lead off the game. The ball sailed over the right field fence. It was her eighth home run of the season and fifth to leadoff a game.
Junior Hanna Ennis singled down the left field line and made it to third base later in the same inning with two outs. A hard hit ball to the Catamount shortstop was booted, which allowed Ennis to score and give the Eagles a 2-0 lead after a half inning of play.
Ennis opened the third inning with a double down the left field line, but was replaced by pinch runner Nicole Benton. A ground out by junior Mackenzie Williams moved her to third and a sacrifice fly by Morrill plated Georgia Southern's third run of the day.
Consecutive hard hit balls by Megen Smith and Andrea Tarashuk put runners on second and third with two outs and forced Western to remove their starting pitcher. The relief pitcher, King, struck out Douberley to strand two runners in scoring position.
Western Carolina broke up Smith's no-hitter bid in the third inning when a single by Haley Pace singled to right field. Amelia Griffin, who walked earlier in the inning, reached third on the hit and scored on an error by the Georgia Southern left fielder. The run cut the GSU advantage to 3-1.
Georgia Southern responded in the top of the fourth when Fogle's RBI double to left field brought Kelly Burnett in for the score with one out. After a line out by Ennis, Williams cleared the bases with a home run to right field. Her two-run long-ball gave Georgia Southern a 6-1 lead.
The Catamounts answered for three runs in the bottom of the frame, which included a two-run home run of their own with one out. Freshman Allie Miles, who replaced Smith after the home run, retired the side with two strikeouts. The runs cut Georgia Southern's advantage to 6-4.
A two-out single by Fogle in the sixth left the junior just a triple shy of hitting for the first cycle in the history of Georgia Southern softball. She stole second and saw Ennis earn a walk, but both runners were stranded to end the inning.
With the Eagles holding their 6-4 lead entering the bottom of the seventh, a leadoff walk by Miles ended her outing. Streetmon relieved Miles for her second appearance of the day.
The Catamounts' rally began when a fielding error put runners on first and second with no outs and a single down the left field line brought the WCU leadoff hitter around third. A relay throw from Eagle right fielder Smith cut down the runner for the first out. With runners in scoring position, a single plated one run, but Smith fired another relay to get the second out at the plate. Streetmon struck out the final batter to earn her second save of the season.
Miles was credited with the victory, her fifth of the season. She worked two and two-thirds of an inning and struck out five Catamounts.
The Eagles close the weekend series on Sunday afternoon against the Catamounts starting at 1 p.m.
Samford 3, Furman 0
Furman 2, Samford 1
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- The Samford softball team captured its first Southern Conference win as it shut out Furman, 3-0, in game one of Saturday's doubleheader before falling in game two, 2-1. The win snapped an 11-game skid for the Bulldogs.
It was also "Kayla Burris Day" out at Bulldog Softball Field. Samford honored the senior pitcher as a part of a series of senior days this season. Burris turned in a stellar performance on her special day as well, pitching a complete-game shutout to earn the win in game one and coming on in relief in the seventh inning of game two to shut down the Paladins' order.
In game one, Lakan Smith gave the Bulldogs their first lead in the bottom of the second with a solo home run to right-center field. It was the first career home run for Smith. Samford added two more runs in the bottom of the third with a sacrifice fly by Amanda Jordan to drive in Robyn Harmon and an RBI single by Nicole Bobrowski to score Brianna Chambers.
Although Furman got five runners on base in the next four innings, Samford managed to hold the Paladins scoreless for the rest of the game and take the 3-0 win.
Harmon and Smith led the Bulldogs at the plate, each going 2-for-3 with a run. Julianne Surane and Chambers each went 1-for-4 while Jordan went 1-for-1 with an RBI. Burris (3-9) pitched a complete game, giving up seven hits while striking out six batters.
Stephanie Field was 2-for-4 for the Paladins while Katie Michaels went 2-for-3. Jessie Homesley, Morgan Hughey and Stephanie Spain also each had a hit for Furman. Lauren Collier (5-9) also pitched a complete game, giving up three runs on eight hits with one strikeout and two walks.
In game two, Furman struck the first blow in the top of the third inning with an RBI single by Homesley to score Michaels. Samford finally tied the game in the bottom of the sixth with an RBI double by Whitney Terry to drive in Kayla Shaffer. However, Hughey led off the top of the seventh with a home run to center field and the Paladins won the game, 2-1.
Harmon, Terry and Shaffer each had a hit for the Bulldogs in game two. Bobrowski (1-4) took the loss, giving up one earned run on five hits in six innings. Burris pitched the final inning, striking out one batter and walking two.
Alex Bimonte led the Paladins in game two, going 2-for-3 at the plate. Hughey went 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI while Homesley went 1-for-2 with a run. Field also went 1-for-3 while Michaels scored a run. Kayla Suskauer (5-4) earned the win, giving up one run on three hits with five strikeouts and three walks.
Samford will go for the series win Sunday afternoon as it takes on Furman in the rubber game at 1 p.m. CT at Bulldog Field.
College of Charleston 7, UNCG 0
UNCG 5, College of Charleston 4
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Kaitlin Merkt hit her fourth home run of the season as UNCG split a doubleheader with College of Charleston to open Southern Conference play Saturday. CofC won game one 7-0 before UNCG took a 5-4 win in game two.
After the Cougars (18-9, 2-3 SoCon) pounded out three homers to take game one, UNCG (10-12, 1-1 SoCon) answered with an offensive outburst of its own to claim game two.
Trailing 1-0 after Carly Corthell scored on a passed ball in the first inning, the Spartans put three runs on the board in the bottom half to take their first lead of the day. After a Jordan Jewett single and an Alex Emeterio walk, Merkt singled through the right side to load the bases.
A wild pitch allowed Jewett to score from third, and Emeterio came in on Katelyn Bedwell's sacrifice fly to right. Eileen Horsmon then singled up the middle off pitcher Stephanie Saylors' glove to knock in Merkt with the third run of the game.
UNCG extended its lead in the third inning, when Emeterio singled to left and Merkt followed with a home run to right to make it a 5-1 contest.
The Cougars clawed back into it in the fifth inning, scoring a trio of unearned runs to tighten the game up. With two outs in the inning, Corthell reached on a throwing error that allowed Hillary Stringer and Kristy Giragosian to score. Lizzy Vaughn followed with an RBI triple to make it a one-run game, but starter Josie Felix struck out the next batter to keep the Spartans on top.
CofC threatened in each of the last two innings, but left a pair of runners on in both frames as UNCG salvaged the split.
Merkt and Emeterio had two hits each in the contest.
Felix improved to 4-3 on the season, allowing four runs, none of them earned, on four hits in 5 innings. Mattson earned her first save of the season, working two scoreless innings.
Saylors (6-6) allowed run earned runs on eight hits and a walk in 4 1/3 innings. SoCon ERA leader Jen Rosene worked the final 1 2/3, not allowing a baserunner.
Game one saw Charleston slug its way past the Spartans. Kelsey Hodgson's solo homer in the second made it a 1-0 game, and two-run home runs from Katie Pesature and Kristi Woodall in the third made it a 5-0 affair.
The Cougars added two more in the fifth inning, with Woodall lining a sac fly to right to score Pesature and Hodgson hitting and RBI double to bring in pinch-runner Kaitlyn White.
UNCG, meanwhile, struggled to get its offense going against CofC starter Alexa Datko, as Emeterio's infield single was the Spartans' lone hit until Horsmon's single through the left side in the fifth.
Datko worked efficiently, retiring 11 straight batters between UNCG's two hits. She struck out six and didn't allow a walk in the complete-game effort.
Mattson (4-8) took the loss, allowing three runs on five hits and four walks in 4 innings. Raeanne Hanks was tagged for four runs, allowing two homers among four hits in 1/3 of an inning. Emeterio worked 2 2/3 scoreless innings of relief, not allowing a hit and striking out one.
Pesature and Hodgson had two hits each for CofC.
The rubber game of the series is set for Sunday at 1 p.m. at UNCG Softball Stadium.
Chattanooga 14, Liberty 6
Texas Tech 3, Chattanooga 1
CLEARWATER, Fla. - The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga softball team split the doubleheader on Saturday at the USF "The Game" Tournament at the Eddie C. Moore Complex beating Liberty (8-9), 14-6 in six innings, and falling to No. 21 Texas Tech (33-1) , 3-1. The Lady Mocs overcame a 6-2 deficit against the Flames with an eight-run fourth inning ignited by a three-run home run by junior shortstop Jessica Traxler and capped by senior third baseman Tiffany Baker's three-run shot.
Head Coach Frank Reed notched his 850th career victory against Libery and is currently in his 10th season with the Lady Mocs. Reed picked up 467 of those wins in 11 seasons at Chattanooga State.
The 19-6 mark is the best start in program history surpassing the 2001 squad that started 18-5.
Leading the Lady Mocs on the day was senior center fielder Lyndsey Stiles going 3-for-5 with a walk and two hit by pitches. Fellow classmate right fielder Della Harrison went 4-for-7 with a home run, while junior catcher Vivian Morimoto and sophomore second baseman Sara Poteat registered three hits each.
In the circle, senior Kandice Irwin recorded the win against the Flames throwing three innings of relief to improve to 8-1 on the season. Taking the loss in game two was senior Michelle Fuzzard, who tossed four strong innings, but yielded three earned runs against the Red Raiders.
Chattanooga returns to action on Sunday with a contest against North Florida at Noon to conclude the three-day event in Clearwater, Fla. Live stats and audio will be available via the softball schedule page of GoMocs.com.
Game One: Chattanooga 14, Liberty 6 (6 Inn.)
Chattanooga had a slow start against Liberty falling behind 6-2 in the fourth, but the offense found its rhythm registering 15 hits and three home runs in the 14-6 victory at the USF "The Game" Tournament.
The round trippers were hit by Baker, Harrison and Traxler, each with at least one runner on base.
Leading the team offensively was Harrison going 3-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and three runs scored. Stiles, Poteat, Fuzzard, Morimoto and Traxler notched two hits against the Flames
Irwin picked up the victory to improve to 8-1 on the year, while fanning four Flames. Earning the start was senior Nikki Waters, who struck out one in 3.0 innings of work.
The Flames struck for two runs in the first inning as a walk followed by three singles provided the lead.
Following a walk to start the bottom of the second, Harrison tied the contest at two on one swing of the bat lifting a pitch over the fence in center. It was the fifth of the season for the Nashville, Tenn., native.
The contest continued to go back and forth as Kelly Strickland took the first pitch over the fence down the left field line to give Liberty a 3-2 advantage in the third.
Liberty tacked on three runs on three hits in the fourth to increase its advantage to 6-2.
After a rough inning defensively, the Lady Mocs responded in a big way scoring eight runs on seven hits to take a 10-6 lead. It all began with a single through the left side by Harrison.
With two runners on following a walk to Morimoto, Traxler drove the first pitch she saw over the fence in left center. The blast was the second of the season for the Chino Hills, Calif., native and cut the deficit to 6-5.
Flores took first on a hit by pitch and the bases became loaded with infield singles by Stiles and Poteat. Tying the game was Fuzzard with a sacrifice fly to right as all the runners moved up a base. A three-run blast to straight-away center by Baker added to the Chattanooga lead, 10-6. The East Ridge, Tenn., native paces the Lady Mocs with seven homers on the season and is the career-leader with 39.
That was not all for Chattanooga as Harrison started a two-out rally with a single into left field. Morimoto followed it up with a single to right and Harrison advanced to third. A ball that was not fielded cleanly by the second baseman allowed for Harrison to add the final run of the frame.
Leading off the sixth, Morimoto hit a ground-rule double down the right field line. A walk to Traxler and a bunt single by senior right fielder Lauren Flores loaded the bases. Stiles was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded driving in Morimoto. Fuzzard ended the game with a single up the middle scoring Stiles and Flores as the Lady Mocs took an eight-run advantage, 14-6, putting the run rule into effect.
Game Two: No. 21 Texas Tech 3, Chattanooga 1
The Lady Mocs fought toe-to-toe and out-hit No. 21 Texas Tech, but fell short, 3-1, on Saturday. The Red Raiders scored their three runs on two homers and pitcher Kelsey Dennis was able to keep the Chattanooga offense in check with nine strikeouts.
In the circle, Fuzzard started the contest tossing two innings and striking out one and Irwin came on to finish the contest throwing the final two frames. Fuzzard was tabbed with the loss to fall to 8-4 on the season.
The offense was lead by Tydingco, who went 2-for-3, while five Lady Mocs also notched hits against the lefty Dennis. Morimoto drove in the only run for the Lady Mocs.
After the Lady Mocs left a runner on in the first, the high-powered Texas Tech offense struck as Emily Bledsoe hit a home run to center to provide the early lead.
In the second, Baker started it off by being hit by a pitch, then Tydingco beat out a bunt single. With a single down the right field line, Harrison loaded the bases. Morimoto knotted the contest at one with a single to center.
The bases remained loaded without an out, but Chattanooga was unable to take a lead of its own as Dennis notched the final two outs on strike outs.
Fuzzard and Dennis kept the teams off balance until the bottom of the fourth as a leadoff single by Cyndey Allen down the left field line put a runner on. Then with one out, Sandy James connected on what would be the game-winning home run to left center as Texas Tech took a 3-1 lead. Freshman catcher Natalie Powers gunned down a would-be base stealer at second to end the frame. It was the third runner caught this season by the Gleenpool, Okla., native.
In the fifth, Chattanooga would start a two-out rally as Stiles and Poteat singled to the outfield. The runners were able to move into scoring position as Stiles sprinted to third on the single, but the Lady Mocs could not drive the runs home.
A great defensive play by Stiles ended the sixth for Texas Tech. The Hixson, Tenn., native went on a full-out sprint to right center, dove and stretched out going toward the wall for the second out of the frame. The runner on first was already headed to third and the centerfielder promptly threw the ball to first for the double play.
Traxler reached base in the seventh on a single to the shortstop, but two straight fly outs ended the game for Chattanooga.