College of Charleston 9, South Carolina State 0
College of Charleston 6, South Carolina State 0
ORANGEBURG, S.C. – Freshman pitcher Hope Klicker threw her first career perfect game in the second game of a 9-0, 6-0 doubleheader sweep by the College of Charleston softball team at South Carolina State on Tuesday afternoon.
The Cougars, now winners of 11 straight games, produced 18 hits on the day and got complete-game shutouts out of both starting pitchers.
Klicker was perfect in the pitching circle in game two and struck out a career-high 16 batters, only requiring five outs of her defense as the Cougars sailed to a 6-0 victory.
Stephanie Saylors pitched a complete game in the first game and struck out 10 hitters while not issuing a single walk and only allowing two hits and two total base runners. She has now thrown complete games in her last 11 outings and only allowed four runs in her last 56 innings of work.
Kelsey Hodgson hit a grand slam in game one which surged CofC to a 9-run fifth-and-final inning of the game.
Carly Corthell went 4-for-4 in game two with an RBI and two runs scored. Klicker, aside from throwing a perfect game, was also 2-for-4 at the plate and scored a run.
GAME ONE: CofC: 9, SC State: 0
Saylors held the Bulldogs to two hits and didn’t allow a base runner until the fourth inning and received run support when the Cougars exploded for nine runs in the top of the fifth. She struck out the first four hitters to step into the box on her way to a 10-strikeout outing, her fifth double-digit game of the season.
The Cougars’ bats were quiet until the fifth inning when they loaded the bases and scored a run off two singles and two walks before Hodgson crushed her eighth home run of the season to put CofC up 5-0. From there, Amanda Lonergan tripled and scored before the Cougars reloaded the bases off a couple fielding errors and a hit batsman. Courtney Clark drove in a run with an RBI groundout and Lauren Pasquale capped off the nine-run inning with a two-RBI double.
GAME TWO: CofC: 6, SC State: 0
Klicker was untouchable in the second game and the Cougars plated a run in the second, third and fifth before hanging up three in the seventh to cruise to their 11th straight victory.
Klicker provided herself with a supporting run when she singled in the second inning, stole second base and later scored on a Bulldog throwing error.
CofC doubled their lead in the third when Corthell doubled to start the frame and then Hodgson did the exact same to take her place on second base and pick up her fifth RBI of the afternoon.
In the fifth, Corthell picked up her third base hit of the game and crossed the plate later in the inning on an RBI single by Mackenzie Maples.
Though Klicker wouldn’t require any additional support, the Cougars put the game further out of reach in the top of the seventh with a leadoff double by Lizzy Vaughn and then RBI singles from Corthell, Kristy Giragosian and Blakeney Sitton.
Furman 2, Presbyterian 1
Furman 7, Presbyterian 2
Clinton, S.C. – Freshman Shelby Parker fanned 10 batters in a complete-game effort in game one and Jessie Homesley went 4-for-5 with three RBI in game two to lead Furman to a 2-1, 7-2 doubleheader sweep of Presbyterian in non-conference softball action on Tuesday afternoon in Clinton, S.C.
The sweep improved the Paladins to 15-27 while Presbyterian fell to 13-22.
Game 1
In game one, Furman plated two runs on sophomore Sarah Eidt’s two-out single in the top of the seventh and freshman Shelby Parker fanned 10 PC batters to lead the Paladins to a 2-1 victory.
With the Paladins trailing 1-0 after six innings, Ambree Muller opened the top of the seventh with a bunt single and moved to second base on Nikki Legg’s single to right field. Relief pitcher Leslie Hensley entered the game and got Jessie Homesley to bounce into a fielder’s choice as Legg was put out at second. After Natalie Clemmons grounded out to the pitcher for the second out, Eidt lined a shot off of Hensley’s leg. As Presbyterian unsuccessfully tried to get the force out at first, Muller scored from third and Homesley scored from second to give Furman the 2-1 lead.
Parker, who allowed only an unearned run on five hits in seven innings, worked around a double and a walk in the bottom of the seventh to claim the victory and improve to 4-3 in the circle. The Cherokee, N.C., product issued just two walks while fanning a career-high 10 batters.
Legg went 3-for-4 at the plate while Eidt collected two hits and registered an RBI as the Paladins snapped a five-game skid.
Kensley Loudermelk suffered the loss for Presbyterian allowing two runs on five hits in six innings of work. She issued just one walk while striking out five in the loss.
Game 2
In game two, senior Jessie Homesley wen 4-for-5 with two doubles and three runs batted in to lead the Paladins to a 7-2 victory.
Furman grabbed an early lead scoring three runs with two outs in the top of the second. Nikki Legg singled to plate Alexis Galinski and scored on Homesley’s double to left field. After Alex Bimonte reached on an error to keep the inning alive, Sarah Eidt singled to left-center to drive in Homesley.
Presbyterian got on the board with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth against Paladin starter Lauren Collier as Tera Powell and Jill McLean provided back-to-back RBI singles with two out.
Furman increased its lead to 5-2 in the sixth. Legg and Homesley opened the frame with singles and Bimonte lined a single up the middle to drive in Legg. With one out, Natalie Clemmons lifted a sacrifice fly to left field to plate Homesley with the second run of the inning.
Homesley capped the scoring in the seventh with a two-run double after Galinski and Legg opened the inning with back-to-back singles.
Legg went 3-for-5 with three runs while Taylor Jenkins finished 3-for-3 with a run. Galinski collected a pair of hits and scored a run for the Paladins.
Collier earned the victory after allowing just one earned run on seven hits in four innings of work. The junior walked one batter and fanned three to improve to 2-6 on the season. Freshman Lakyn Shull tossed three innings of one-hit relief to record her fourth save of the campaign.
Hensley absorbed the loss for the Blue Hose after surrendering seven runs, five earned, on 15 hits in seven innings of work. She struck out five without issuing a walk.
Furman opens a three-game Southern Conference home series against Samford with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday. The series concludes with a single game at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Georgia Tech 1, Georgia Southern 0
Georgia Tech 5, Georgia Southern 1
ATLANTA, Ga. – Georgia Southern Softball narrowly missed an upset win over Georgia Tech on Tuesday afternoon, dropping both games of a doubleheader from Mewborn Field in Midtown. Sarah Purvis tossed a two-hitter in game one, but a first inning run was the difference. In game two the Eagles led early, but three errors in the contest led to a 5-1 Georgia Tech victory.
-GAME ONE-
Tech took an early lead in the first inning as the starting pitcher, Hope Rush helped out her own cause with a single up the middle to score Ashley Thomas from second base. After the hit, Purvis, the Georgia Southern starting pitcher, retired the next 13 batters until the Yellow Jackets earned a leadoff hit in the sixth frame. Later in the sixth, Purvis hit a batter and walked another in the frame before retiring the final three outs of the inning in order to keep the Georgia Tech lead at just 1-0.
In the top of the seventh, a leadoff walk put a runner on first which advanced to second on an attempted sacrifice bunt. The Yellow Jackets threw to second base, failing to catch pinch runner Jorie Walker. Both Walker and fellow pinch runner Nicole Benton moved up a base on Kourtny Thomas’ sacrifice bunt. The Eagles, however, would strand the tying and go-ahead runs on base in the seventh as Rush retired the final two batters on pop outs in the infield.
Purvis finished the afternoon with her second two-hitter against Georgia’s power conference teams. She fanned nine Yellow Jackets in the appearance with a walk and two hit batters. She takes the hard-luck loss, falling to 13-7 on the season.
-GAME TWO-
After going quietly in the first two innings of game two, Tabby Douberley broke open the third inning with a double to the gap in left. The two-bagger put her on second and pinch runner Breanna McLendon on third. A walk to Lexi Allen loaded the bases with no outs in the frame. A fielder’s choice by Alexa Lewis up the middle brought McLendon home for the Eagles’ first run of the afternoon.
Starting pitcher Allie Miles took a no-hitter into the fourth inning, but her bid was ended with one out in the frame as Kelsi Weseman singled with a liner up the middle. A second hit and an Eagle fielding error ended Miles’ outing as Purvis returned for a second appearance in the doubleheader. Weseman scored off a bloop shot to center the dropped in as the Eagles recorded an out at second on the play. The run tied the score at 1-1 through four complete innings.
In the sixth inning the Eagles got a leadoff single from Lewis and a walk for Hanna Ennis to put a runner in scoring position with no outs. Two lineouts in the infield and a fly ball to right stranded the two Eagles in the 1-1 game.
A two-out fielding error by Thomas left the door open for Georgia Tech to stay alive in the bottom of the sixth. After the error, Georgia Tech posted a single to right and a hit batter to load the bases. The Jackets then got a pair of doubles to score four runs in the inning and take a 5-1 advantage into the seventh inning.
Shelby Morrill opened the seventh with a double off the wall in centerfield, but she was doubled off on Thomas’ line-out to second base later in the inning. Georgia Tech would retire the Eagles to take the 5-1 victory and hand Purivs her second loss of the afternoon, dropping her to 13-8 this year. She allowed just three hits in her two and two-thirds of an inning of work. None of the five runs scored in the game were earned.
This weekend Georgia Southern returns home for a three-game set against College of Charleston. Saturday’s games begin at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. with Sunday’s doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. Sunday’s game is the Eagles’ annual Breast Cancer Awareness game. Georgia Southern will wear special pink jerseys for the contest The shirts can be purchased at Russell Union on campus Wednesday and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and at Saturday’s games for $15 each. All proceeds will go to the Susan G. Komen For The Cure Foundation.
Chattanooga 8, Tennessee Tech 0 (6 innings)
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - The Chattanooga Lady Mocs softball team struck for three runs, all driven in by sophomore shortstop Jessica Traxler, in the first inning as the team rolled to an 8-0 win against Tennessee Tech on Tuesday night at Frost Stadium. Freshman outfielder Cheyenne Willis tallied three hits, while sophomore outfielder Layne Rainey registered two base knocks.
Ten players notched hits for the Lady Mocs as the team improved to 24-13 on the year. Tennessee Tech fell to 15-22 following the mid-week matchup.
Both Chattanooga pitchers received work as senior Michelle Fuzzard picked up her 10th win of the season after throwing four innings and striking out one. Freshman Taylor Deason completed the contest, throwing four strong innings and registering three strikeouts.
Tennessee Tech scattered four hits as Taylor Ketchum took the loss in the circle to fall to 1-4, while striking out three. Erica Tuck completed the contest with 1.2 innings of work.
Starting off the first, Willis singled to short and two batters later, Fuzzard doubled into the right center gap. After the second out of the frame and a hit by pitch to load the bases, Traxler stepped up and cleared the bases with a double to right center, 3-0.
Neither team was able to jump start the offense until the fourth as junior second baseman Ninjja Suetsugu recorded a two-out double. A single from Rainey and an ensuing throwing error allowed the runner from second to score.
After a quite fifth, sophomore pinch hitter Kaiti Dutton drew a one-out walk before both runners were safe on a fielder's choice off the bat of Rainey. A RBI double down the right field line moved two runners into scoring position. Singling to drive home Rainey was Willis before Fuzzard reached first on an error, 7-0. Morimoto ended the game with a double to right center as the eight-run rule was implemented.
The Lady Mocs return to action on Saturday hosting a doubleheader against Western Carolina at 1 p.m. at Frost Stadium. The finale of the series is played on Sunday at 1 p.m.
UAB 12, Samford 4 (4.5 innings)
UAB 8, Samford 0
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- Samford softball took two tough losses in a midweek double header at cross-town rival UAB, as the Bulldogs fell 12-4 and 8-0.
Samford (9-29) was out-paced by the UAB (25-14) offense in both games, as the Blazers earned both early victories with the run rule. The Bulldog attack was led by Alex Adams, who went a combined 3-6 at the plate, while Misha Aldridge and Shelby Scott both earned two RBI.
Game One: UAB 12, Samford 4 (4.5 Innings)
Behind a big fourth inning, UAB would earn a 12-4 win with a walk-off double in the bottom of the fifth. Aldridge (5-14) takes the loss for Samford in the circle and the Bulldog offense was led by Scott, going 2-3 including a two-run homer. UAB’s Leigh Streetman (7-5) earns the win for the Blazers in the circle and their offense was led by Kayla Orr, who went 2-4 with four RBI.
The game started on time, despite a steady pregame rain that continued throughout most of the first inning. The sun came out just in time for a heads-up double play to end the first inning. A hard grounder came right back at Aldridge on the mound, who quickly turned around and whipped it to Abby Adams who then dished it to Alex Adams to complete the textbook 1-6-3 double play.
Samford got on the board first, scoring two in the top of the second. With two outs and two runners in scoring position, Aldridge would hit a clutch double to shallow right field, as the ball got past the sliding outfielder, to bring home two and put Samford up 2-0 early.
UAB would quickly tie the game up in the bottom half of the inning. With runners in scoring position, a single to right field scored the runner from third and an error on the throw home would bring in the trailing runner and move the batter all the way to third. The Blazers would load the bases but the threat would be neutralized as their home-run leader, Kristen McGrath, grounded out to Abby Adams to end the inning with the score tied, 2-2.
UAB would take a substantial lead in the bottom of the fourth, as they manufactured eight runs to pull ahead 10-2. The Blazers started the run with a deep double to the left field fence, bringing home the runner from second to give the Blazers the 3-2 edge. A single to center field would bring home another run, pushing the Blazers’ lead to 4-2. Whitney Fletcher would follow that with a triple to left field, driving another run home to build a 5-2 lead. That run would end the game for Aldridge in the circle, as Scott came in as the relief pitcher. UAB would rope a hard double down the left line to drive home yet another run, as they extended the lead to 6-2. The long inning refused the end with the next batter driving a long ball past the fence, as the two-run homer pushed the lead to 8-2. An infield error with two out would plate two more runners as the big inning would ultimately end with a score of 10-2.
Facing the large deficit, Samford needed to score at least two runs to stay alive past the fifth inning. The heart of the Bulldogs’ order battled with the Blazers, as Alex Adams legged out a one-out double on the tenth pitch of the at-bat. Tessa Frates came in as a pinch runner and moved to third on a wild pitch. Down to their final batter, Scott came through with a clutch two-run homer to left field to prevent the five-inning run rule loss. The top half of the inning would end with Samford trailing 10-4.
After a leadoff walk in the bottom of the fifth, play was briefly delayed as the rain picked up, though it only lasted about 15 minutes. After walking another batter, a double to left field would bring home two and end the game, giving the Blazers the 12-4 run rule victory.
Game Two: UAB 8, Samford 0 (6 Innings)
The Samford offense failed to find a rhythm in game two, as they were limited to three hits and held scoreless in the 8-0 shutout loss. Nicole Bobrowski (0-4) takes the loss for Samford, as she pitched 5.2 innings before giving up the game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the sixth. Amber Torres (6-3) earns the win for UAB in the circle while their offense was led by Kayla Orr, who went 2-4 with two RBI.
UAB threatened in the bottom of the second with a runner at third and one out, but Madison Dickey made a great play behind the plate, picking off the runner at third to clear the bases and put two outs on the board. With two singles, the Blazers would put runners at the corners but a groundout to Abby Adams would end the threat and keep the game scoreless. Samford would threaten similarly in the next half-inning, putting runners at the corners in the top of the third with one out. Arica Dykes was caught stealing on an extremely close play at second and a hard line out to left field ended the threat.
The Blazers would score the first runs of the game in the bottom of the third, as Whitney Fletcher launched a two-run homer to centerfield to put UAB up 2-0. UAB’s Kristen McGrath would hit a second two-run homer later in the inning, as the Blazers ended the inning with the 4-0 lead.
The offenses were held in check as neither team scored until the bottom of the sixth, when the Blazers hit a bases-loaded groundout that got the force-out at second put brought a runner home to make the score 5-0. Another hit dropped into shallow center for a double, bringing in two more runs to pull the Blazers up 7-0.
Next up, Samford will head to Greenville, S.C. to play three games against the Furman Paladins. Action begins with a double header on Saturday, April 14 beginning at noon CT.