College of Charleston 5, South Carolina State 3
College of Charleston 6, South Carolina State 1
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – The College of Charleston softball team took two games from South Carolina State in a Tuesday evening doubleheader at Patriots Point. CofC downed SC State by 5-3 and 6-1 counts with a combined 25 hits between the two games.
Hope Klicker picked up the game one win with five innings of shutout softball. The freshman struck out four batters and allowed just three hits.
Stephanie Saylors snagged the win in the late game with an impressive 4.2 inning appearance in which she struck out 10 hitters and gave up just one hit. The Bulldogs’ first hit in the fifth inning broke Saylors’ streak of 11.1 consecutive scoreless innings.
Amanda Lonergan went 3-for-3 in the first game with an RBI and a double. Kristy Giragosian had a pair of RBIs in the second game by way of her first career home run and an executed squeeze bunt.
GAME ONE: CofC: 5, South Carolina State: 3
The Cougars moved out to a 5-0 lead over the first four innings to provide Klicker the run support she needed to claim the win. The Bulldogs chipped away at the lead over the late innings but CofC limited their comeback effort to three runs
The Cougars started early with a leadoff single by Lizzy Vaughn after which she made an alert play on the base paths to steal second base. Lonergan later doubled to the fence to plate Vaughn.
CofC added to the lead in the third when Carly Corthell legged out a bunt single, stole second and then took third on an infield single by Lonergan. Corthell took the plate on a double steal maneuver and Lonergan scored on a single up the middle by Klicker.
The Cougars insured their lead further in the fourth with a two-out rally sparked by an infield single by Ashton Jarrett. Vaughn then tripled to the opposite field to score Jarrett and Corthell singled to bring Vaughn to the plate and put the Cougars up 5-0.
The Bulldogs went to work in the sixth and came away with a run after a walk, fielder’s choice and RBI double from Mikala Johnson. They tried to cross two runs on Johnson’s double but the relay throw from Katie O’Brien in left to Vaughn at shortstop to Courtney Clark at the plate was in time to get the out.
The Bulldogs plated two more in the seventh by way of a hit, walk and fielding error but could get no closer in the comeback effort.
GAME TWO: CofC: 6, South Carolina State: 1
Saylors started the second game and pitched 4.1 innings perfectly to earn her fourth win of the season as the Cougars outhit the Bulldogs by a 12-2 count. Clark belted two triples and picked up a run and RBI in the game as well.
The Cougars took the early lead in the second inning when Lauren Pasquale led off with a single and scored on Clark’s first triple of the game.
Vaughn led off the third with a triple of her own which she sent deep into the corner in right field. The next batter, Corthell, then sent a fly ball to center which was deep enough to score Vaughn and grant Corthell the RBI and sacrifice fly.
The Cougars blew the game open with a rally in the third initiated by Giragosian’s line-drive home run to left field. Then, Jarrett and Vaughn both boarded the bases before Kelsey Hodgson and Pasquale singled to drive the score to 5-0.
In the fifth, the Cougars scored for the fourth consecutive inning when Clark tripled once again and Giragosian brought her to the plate with a perfectly-executed squeeze bunt.
USC Upstate 3, Furman 0
USC Upstate 4, Furman 0
Greenville, S.C. – USC Upstate remained unbeaten and ran its season-opening streak of consecutive innings without allowing an earned run to 89 as the Spartans blanked Furman 3-0 and 4-0 on Tuesday afternoon at Pepsi Stadium.
With the sweep, USC Upstate improved to 14-0 on the season and increased its shutout total to 13. Furman slipped to 4-7 on the season.
The Spartans got on the board in the top of the second inning in game two when a two-out throwing error allowed Kara Lohr and Maddison Kieffer to cross the plate. After leaving the bases loaded in the third and fourth innings, Upstate added an insurance run in the sixth as Ericka Harris reached base on a single and scored on Ashley Butler’s RBI base hit.
Hannah Alexander improved to 9-0 in the circle for the Spartans by fanning 12 batters and tossing a complete-game, shutout. Alexander surrendered just three hits and three walks in seven innings. She worked out of jams in the second and third innings to strand a pair of Paladins on the base paths each time.
Butler collected two hits to pace Upstate’s nine-hit attack in game one, but the Spartans stranded 13 runners.
Lakyn Shull (1-1), who allowed just two unearned runs on three hits in four innings of work, suffered the loss for Furman. Freshman Taylor Jenkins paced the Paladins at the plate going 2-for-3 with a double.
In game two, Upstate’s Lacey Dinney tossed a one-hit shutout and the Spartans scored four unearned runs on five Paladin errors to claim a 4-0 victory.
Dinney (5-0) issued just one walk while striking out nine Furman batters in seven innings to earn the win.
USC Upstate plated an unearned run in the fifth inning and scored three consecutive unearned runs in the sixth inning with two outs after a one-out fielding error by the Paladins.
Harris went 3-for-4 to lead the Spartans while Lindsey Kelly, Butler, and Hayley Reinfeld each collected two hits apiece.
Hannah Bradley (1-2) took the loss for Furman despite not allowing an earned run. She allowed four unearned runs on 13 hits in seven innings. Bradley, a senior, struck out two batters and did not allow a walk.
Senior Jessie Homesley notched the lone game two hit for the Paladins.
Furman returns to action this weekend in Georgia Tech’s Buzz Classic at Twin Creeks Softball Complex in Woodstock, Ga. The Paladins face Alabama State at noon on Friday before taking on the University of Rhode Island at 2:30 p.m. On Saturday, Furman battles Winthrop and Jacksonville State before concluding tournament play against Georgia State on Sunday.