Georgia Southern 1, Southern Illinois 0

Georgia Southern 4, Wichita State 3

FORT MYERS, FLA. - Georgia Southern Softball picked up a historic victory on Friday afternoon with a 1-0 win over Southern Illinois in the opening game of the FGCU/LaQuinta Inn at the Airport Tournament. Sarah Purvis tossed the first perfect game in program history in the weekend's opening game, facing the minimum of 21 batters. In game two, the Eagles took advantage of a late Wichita State error to force extra innings and ultimately win 4-3 in eight innings.

- GAME ONE - GSU 1, Southern Illinois 0 -

Sarah Purvis continued her masterful work in the pitching circle as the junior tossed the first perfect game in Georgia Southern softball history. She retired all 21 batters in order with 11 via the strikeout. Of the 10 balls that were put into play, eight were caught on the fly and there were two ground outs. The 12th no-hit performance in school history is the second for Purivs after the junior tossed a no-no last season against LaSalle.

All of the scoring took place in the top of the sixth inning. Andrea Tarashuk opened the frame with a single, but was replaced by a pinch runner, Dominique Grosman. The freshman stole second and came home with two outs when fellow freshman Lindsey Wilcox hit a single to centerfield, allowing Grossman to give GSU the decisive 1-0 advantage.

Purvis is now 4-0 on the season with 42 total strikeouts. She was named SoCon Pitcher of the Week for the opening weekend of the season when she took a no-hitter through five and two-thirds in the season opener against St. John's.

- GAME TWO - GSU 4 - Wichita St. 3 (8 Inn.) -

Back-to-back doubles in the first inning for Wichita State gave the shockers an early 2-0 lead. Wichita State added another run in the fourth inning for a 3-0 Shocker lead.

The Eagles had a golden opportunity in the fourth inning, loading the bases with no outs, but a pair of strikeouts would retire the Eagle side in the frame.

In the seventh with their backs against the wall, Georgia Southern got the leadoff runner aboard on an error, followed by an RBI triple by Alexa Lewis. Lewis came home to make it a 3-2 game on a sacrifice fly by Lexi Allen. After a ground out to reduce the Eagles to their final out, Kourtny Thomas crushed a home run to tie the game at 3-3 and sending the contest to extra innings.

Entering the eighth inning Tarashuk was placed on second base in accordance with the international tiebreaker rule. She moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Kaitlyn Johnson. A single by pinch hitter Breanna McLendon loaded the bases for freshman catcher A.J. Hamilton with no outs. She delivered a sacrifice fly, scoring Tarashuk and giving the Eagles the 4-3 win.

The Eagles face the Salukis again on Saturday morning at 9 a.m. before taking on top-ranked Alabama on Saturday afternoon at approximately 3:45 p.m. The weekend closes on Sunday afternoon at approximately 1:30 p.m. against Florida Gulf Coast.

Appalachian State 10, Southern Illinois 9

No. 1 Alabama 9, Appalachian State 3

FT. MYERS, Fla. - Appalachian State University softball opened its 2013 season with a 10-9 victory in eight innings over Southern Illinois before suffering a 9-3 loss to No. 1 Alabama on Friday at the FGCU/LaQuinta Inn & Suites Invitational.

Game One: App State 10, Southern Illinois 9

The Salukis were the first to light up the scoreboard as they scored an unearned run in the top of the first inning. App State picked up the first hit of the game as Meghan Smith singled through the left side of the infield, but was unable to score.

SIU extended its lead to 4-0 in the top of the second inning as they scored three runs on one hit and a passed ball.

The Apps loaded the bases in the bottom of the second as junior Lindsay Loudermilk came around to score on a fielders' choice, bringing App State within three of Southern Illinois.

The Salukis loaded the bases in the top of third and knocked in three runs on two hits. The first run came in when Lacey Newbold singled through the left side of the field scoring Jayna Spivey. Southern Illinois scored its final two runs of the inning when Taylor Orsburn singled to center field.

Appalachian loaded the bases for the second time in the contest as Loudermilk singled to the edge of the grass allowing Sarah Warnock to score from third. The Black and Gold started a rally as it tacked on its second run of the third inning when Caroline Rogers drew a walk that would score Smith, making the score 7-4.

Loudermilk crossed home on a Cynthia Gomez single to the pitcher that brought the Mountaineers within two of SIU with only one out. The Southern Illinois defense shut down the next two batters as the Apps ended the inning trailing the Salukis, 7-5.

Loudermilk notched her second hit of the contest as she doubled to left center scoring Smith and advancing Allie Cashion to third with only one out in the bottom of the fourth. Cashion was left stranded on third as the Apps entered the fifth inning trailing Southern Illinois, 7-6.

The Salukis tacked on two runs in the top of the sixth inning as they scored two runs on a single down the left field line, taking the 9-6 advantage over the Mountaineers.

The Black and Gold made its third offensive strike in the contest as they loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth forcing SIU to re-enter starting pitcher Brittney Lang, but was unable to push a run across the plate.

The Mountaineers battled back in the bottom of the seventh as sophomore Dani Heichen had a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a bunt single by Warnock. Heichen crossed home when Smith singled to right center, bringing the Apps within two of the Salukis.

Appalachian capitalized on a Southern Illinois error to score one and would knot the game at nine all when Loudermilk tacked on her fourth hit of the afternoon, bringing in Smith and sending the game into extra innings.

Gomez would be placed on second for the Apps due to international tie breaker rules and advanced to third on a bunt from pinch hitter Whitney Johnson. The winning run crossed the plate when Warnock singled down the left field line allowing Gomez to score from third.

Loudermilk led Appalachian on offense going four-for-four at the plate with three runs batted in, while Warnock, Smith and Gomez each added two hits. Freshman Shivaun Landeros earned her first career victory as she pitched five innings with three strikeouts and allowing five hits, while Alissa Schoelkopf pitched 2.1 innings with six strikeouts.

The Black and Gold had 12 hits compared to SIU's six with six players on the App State roster tallying a hit and four notching two or more.

Game Two: No. 1 Alabama 9, App State 3

Appalachian State fell behind early in the bottom of the first inning against No. 1 Alabama as the Crimson Tide scored two runs on two hits.

Bama extended its lead to 4-0 when Jackie Traina and Danae Hays hit back-to-back home runs to opposite fields.

The Apps first offensive threat of the contest came in the top of the fourth inning when Cashion led off with a double down the left field line and advanced to third on a passed ball. Rogers reached first after being hit by a pitch but neither would advance as the Alabama defense shut down the Mountaineers.

The Crimson Tide tacked on three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning when they capitalized on two hit batters, one walk and two wild pitches.

App State took advantage of two walks from Alabama pitcher Lauren Sewell in the top of the fifth inning. Cashion dug in with runners on first and second and knocked a home run over the left field fence, making the score 7-3 and picking up her second hit of the contest.

The Crimson Tide responded to the Mountaineers three runs as they scored one run on one hit in the bottom of the fifth inning, extending its lead to five.

Alabama took the 9-3 advantage over the Apps in the bottom of the sixth inning when Chaunsey Bell reached first on a fielder's choice, allowing Hays to score from third.

Appalachian was unable to score in the top of the seventh as the Crimson Tide earned the 9-3 victory over the Mountaineers.

Cashion led App State as she had the only two hits in the game with one home run and three runs batted in, while Alex Sohl drew two walks and scored one. Cashions home run gives her 32 career home runs, which is 12 away from the App State career record. Landeros suffered the loss in the circle, making her 1-1 overall on the season.

With the split Appalachian moves to 1-1 overall on the season, while Alabama improves to 6-0 overall on the season. Loudermilk led Appalachian overall on the day as she tallied four hits, while Cashion, Smith, Warnock and Gomez all had two.

Appalachian State will be back in action on Saturday when it takes on Florida Gulf Coast at 1:30 p.m before playing Wichita State in the night cap. The night game is slated to start at 8:15 p.m

Samford 1, Winthrop 0

SPARTANBURG, S.C. ---- Samford opened action at the Spartan Invitational on Friday with a pitcher's duel against Winthrop.  A solo home run late in the game ended up being the difference as the Bulldogs dropped another tough one-run game, falling 1-0 to the Eagles.

The Samford (2-4) offense could only muster one hit, though four errors by the Winthrop defense gave the Bulldogs multiple opportunities throughout the game to score.  Madison Dickey's sixth-inning single gives her a three-game hitting streak, the longest on the team in the opening week of the season.  Mollie Hanson (2-3) suffers another hard-luck loss in the circle, falling under .500 despite only surrendering one earned run off four hits with six strikeouts.

Winthrop (2-4) earns its second win of the season with second baseman Kritsy Noble hitting the deciding home run in the sixth inning.  Sutton Watson (2-1) pitched the full 7.0 innings with only one hit allowed and eight strikeouts.

Consecutive errors by the Winthrop third baseman in the top of the third inning put Hannah Taylor and Megan Dowdy on base with the heart of the order due up for the Bulldogs.  The pair eventually both moved into scoring position after a popup and a groundout, but a lineout left them stranded to end the scoring threat.

Despite multiple runners on base throughout the game, it wasn't until the top of the sixth inning that Samford finally broke into the hit column as Dickey led off the inning with a single up the middle.  She was sacrificed over to second and then advanced to third on a groundout to put the potential go-ahead run 60 feet away with two outs.  A strikeout ended the inning however to strand her at third as the game remained scoreless.

With one out in the bottom of the sixth, Noble put the Eagles up late with a solo home run to right field as they moved up 1-0.  A lineout and a strikeout ended the inning but put the Bulldogs in a must-score position heading into the top of the seventh.  Unfortunately, the Samford bats couldn't find their stroke in the top of the seventh as the Bulldogs went down in order to end another tough one-run loss.

Samford continues its weekend with a 10 a.m. ET game tomorrow against George Washington (1-2).  The Colonials play a double-header tonight against Bowling Green and USC Upstate.

Western Carolina 4, UNC Wilmington 1

Western Carolina 2, Charleston Southern 0

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Western Carolina softball (4-2) picked up a pair of wins in the first day of action at the Lipton Florida Invitational, defeating UNC Wilmington 4-1 and Charleston Southern 2-0, Friday at KSP Stadium.

Western Carolina 4, UNC Wilmington 1

Sophomore pitcher Jordan Garrett (2-2) tied her career-high with 12 strikeouts and gave up one run and three hits in Western Carolina's 4-1 win over UNC Wilmington. It was the second time in as many weeks Garrett had recorded 12 strikeouts in a game.

The Catamounts scored three runs in the bottom of the first inning, against the Sea Hawks, to set the tone of the game. Amelia Griffin drew a lead-off walk and senior Jordan Fulton laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Griffin to second. Senior Shemekia Scotton drew the second walk of the game to place runners on first and second. A single by senior Amber Steinhardt loaded the bases and a walk by Haley Pace sent in Griffin for the first run of the game. Sophomore catcher lined out to second base but a throwing error by UNC Wilmington plated Scotton and Steinhardt for the second and third runs of the inning.

After a scoreless second inning, both teams scored a run in the third inning. UNC Wilmington got on the board off a pair of doubles in the inning. Morgan McCann led off with a double and scored from an RBI double by Lauryn Buckworth.

Western Carolina answered with a run of its own in the bottom of the third. Senior Jordan Fulton hit her first triple of the season and rounded home off an RBI single by Scotton.

Both teams went scoreless the next four innings. After giving up the RBI double early in the third inning, Garrett sat down eight straight batters before Buckworth pounded a lead-off single to start the sixth. Garrett closed out the game by sitting down the next six batters.

Chastain was 2-for-3 in the game for Western Carolina. Overall, the Catamounts had five hits in the game and did not commit an error in the game.

Western Carolina 2, Charleston Southern 0

Senior pitcher Amber Steinhardt tossed the first shutout of the season for the Catamounts with a 2-0 win over Charleston Southern to close out day one action at the Lipton Florida Invitational. Steinhardt went five innings allowing four hits. Freshman Mallory Broome tossed the fifth inning and Garrett closed out the game by pitching in the seventh.

Western Carolina scored a pair of runs in the top of the second inning and it proved to be all the offense the Catamounts needed for the win. With two outs, after a double play erased Pace who led off the inning with a walk, freshman Taylor Sigmon ripped a double to right center field. Sophomore Megan Crowe hit the second double of the inning to send Sigmon around to score and Crowe scored from an RBI single by freshman Amber Kimrey.

With the 2-0 lead, Steinhardt went back to work going three more innings giving up a walk and a hit. Steinhardt got into a bit of a jam in the sixth inning with a pair of singles and a walk to start the inning loading the bases wit no outs. Broome came into the game bookending a pair of strikeouts and fly out to third base to get out of the inning.

Garrett closed out the game entering in the seventh inning. She struggled a bit hitting a pair of batters but got a strikeout and a two ground outs to end the inning and the game.

The Catamounts had six hits in the game with Sigmon going 2-for-3. Scotton extended her hitting streak, to start the season, to six.

Western Carolina will face Charleston Southern again at 9:15 a.m. Saturday and then No. 5 Florida at noon in day two action of the Lipton Florida Invitational.

Furman 3, Gardner-Webb 2

Furman 6, Gardner-Webb 3

Boiling Springs, N.C. - Sophomore Natalie Clemmons belted a two-run homer to lead Furman to a 3-2 victory over Gardner-Webb in game one, and Taylor Jenkins helped complete the sweep of the Bulldogs with a three-run triple in a 6-3, game two triumph on Friday afternoon at Varsity Field in Boiling Springs, N.C.

With the sweep, Furman improved to 5-1 on the season, matching its best start since the 1998 campaign.  Gardner-Webb dropped to 0-2.

GAME 1

After Clemmons hammered a two-run bast to left-center field to stake the Paladins to a 3-0 advantage through six and 1/2 innings, Furman had to fight to hold off Gardner-Webb for a 3-2 victory.

Melinda Dulkowski, Samantha Meenaghan and Kellie Beres each reached on a one-out single to load the bases against Furman starter Lauren Collier in the bottom of the seventh inning.  Morgan Baker followed with a double into the gap to plate Dulkowski and Meenaghan, but Nikki Legg fired the ball into Sieara Bishop who threw out Beres at the plate to protect the lead.  Relief pitcher Meaghan Houston then entered the game and got cleanup hitter Elizabeth Williams to groundout to the catcher to cap the victory and earn her third save of the season.

Collier limited the Bulldogs to a pair of runs on nine hits in six and 2/3 innings while walking just one and striking out three.  The victory improved the junior righthander to 3-0 on the season.

Furman took a 1-0 first-inning lead when Stephanie Field reached on a leadoff single, went to third on Collier's base hit and scored on a Hannah Pace grounder.  In the seventh, Ambree Muller looped a two-out single into center field ahead of Clemmons two-run clout to up the lead to 3-0.

Field, Muller and Clemmons each collected a pair of hits for the Paladins.

Ashley Rhyne (0-1) took the loss for Gardner-Webb after giving up three runs on nine hits.  She walked one batter and struck out three.

GAME 2

In the second game, Furman exploded for six runs on six hits in the opening frame and held on to top the Bulldogs, 6-3.

Field, Legg and Collier opened the contest with singles to load the bases with nobody out before Taylor Collins' infield single put the Paladins in front 1-0.  Pace drew a bases loaded walk to force in the second run and Muller greeted reliever Alyssa Gutierrez with a single to center to put Furman ahead 3-0.

After Gutierrez notched a strikeout for the second out of the inning, Taylor Jenkins tripled off of the right field wall to clear the bases and up the margin to 6-0.

Houston, earning her first collegiate start, cruised through the first five innings, but Gardner-Webb tallied two runs off of reliever Shelby Parker in the bottom of the sixth inning, highlighted by Williams' RBI double.  After an RBI double by Meenaghan trimmed the Furman lead to 6-3 and brought the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the seventh, Houston reentered the game to record the final out.

Houston scattered three hits in five and 1/3 innings of shutout work to improve to 2-0 in the circle.  The Fort Worth, Texas, native struck out three batters without issuing a walk.  Jenkins led the Paladins at the plate going 2-for-3 with three RBI.

Starter Jessica Childers (0-1) absorbed the loss for the Bulldogs.  She allowed five runs on four hits while retiring only one batter.  Meenaghan went 3-for-4 with a double to pace the Gardner-Webb offense.

Furman returns to action on Wednesday when it travels to Clinton, S.C., to face the Presbyterian Blue Hose in a 2 p.m. doubleheader.

Belmont 1, UNCG 0

UNCG 4, Alabama State 0

MONTGOMERY, Ala. - The UNCG softball team dropped a heartbreaker against Belmont, 1-0, in eight innings but bounced back to defeat Alabama State, 4-0, on Day One Friday night at the Barbara Williams softball complex.

Belmont 1, UNCG 0 (eight innings)

In game one, redshirt junior Raeanne Hanks (Rainier, Ore./Rainier Senior) set a new career high with 13 strikeouts, coming just four shy of setting the UNCG single-game record, in a tough 1-0 loss in eight innings against Belmont. Hanks allowed just three hits with one walk in 7.1 innings pitched.

In the bottom of the eighth, Belmont's Kat Hollingsworth lined the game-winning hit to left field to give the Spartans their first loss of the 2013 season. The inning started with the international tiebreaker rule that put Heather Turner on second base. Hanks struck out the first batter swinging but Belmont put runners on second and third after a fielder's choice. Hollingsworth then ended the game with the walk off hit.

The Spartans had a chance in the top of the eighth when sophomore Dominique Madruga (San Diego, Calif./Cathedral Catholic) was placed on second base per the international tiebreaker rules. Junior Aisha Figueroa (Virginia Beach, Va./Ocean Lakes) grounded out moving Madruga to third with one-out. Pinch-hitter Nicole Thomas (Irvine, Ca./Northwood) struck out swinging, while sister Lindsay Thomas (Irvine, Ca./Northwood) popped out to end the inning.

UNCG had an opportunity in the top of the third after Madruga reached first base after an error by Belmont. Madruga moved into scoring position but the Spartans couldn't bring her home.

In the bottom of the fourth, Belmont put a runner in scoring position after Kirbie Ferrell reached on an error. Ferrell moved to third but Hanks got Jordan Daly to groundout to shortstop to end the threat.

UNCG 4, Alabama State 0

Hanks threw five solid innings, allowing just one hit, to earn her third victory of the season. The Spartans pounded out 16 hits to bounce back after a tough game one loss.

Junior Katelyn Bedwell (Surrey, British Columbia/Elgin Park Secondary) finished the game 4-for-4 at the plate with a double and an RBI triple.

In game two, UNCG quickly took a 1-0 lead after Figueroa bunted for a hit and advanced home on an errant throw by the first base man. After two outs, Bedwell and senior Eileen Horsmon (Dunkirk, Md./Northern) hit back-to-back doubles giving the Spartans a 2-0 advantage.

The Spartans scored another run in the top of the fifth after an RBI fielder's choice from junior Toni MacReynolds (Vienna, Va./James Madison). Bedwell started the inning with a single, followed by a bunt single from Horsmon. Freshman Danielle Vega (Rialto, Calif./Aquinas) picked up her third hit to load the bases. MacReynolds brought home one run but the Spartans couldn't push across another.

Bedwell gave UNCG a 4-0 in the top of the sixth with an RBI triple to right field. Bedwell brought home Lindsay Thomas, who singled with one-out.

UNCG continues the Hornet Invitational Saturday, Feb. 16 against Eastern Illinois at 11:30 a.m. at the Barbara Williams Softball complex.

James Madison 6, College of Charleston 0

MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - The College of Charleston softball team fell, 6-0, to James Madison in the season opener as part of the CofC Classic at Patriots Point on Friday evening. The Cougars fell behind early and were plagued by five stranded runners in the first two frames.

After three-run JMU first and fifth innings, CofC (0-1) lacked the timely hitting it needed to get back in the game.

Freshman Jailyn Ford was the star for the Dukes in her first career start, limiting CofC to four hits in a complete-game effort. She also notched five RBIs with her bat by way of a pair of homeruns.

After a pair of singles in the top half of the first, Ford sent a towering two-run shot over the fence in left to hurry the Dukes out to a 3-0 lead.

The Cougars looked to retaliate in the bottom half after Carly Corthell (Reno, Nev.) singled up the middle and Mackenzie Maples (Corona, Calif.) and Kelsey Hodgson (Woodstock, Ga.) drew free passes to load the bases with one out. The Cougars couldn't put the ball in play for the rest of the inning in order to cut into the lead.

Cougar starting pitcher Hope Klicker (Walla Walla, Wash.) hastily worked through the top of the second inning and the Cougars looked to get back to work with the bats in the bottom half. Kristy Giragosian (Charlotte, N.C.) and Ashton Jarrett (Hanahan, S.C.) extended the inning with one-out singles, but wouldn't get any further.

CofC would fail to reach another base runner until the sixth inning, and Ford put the game further out of reach with a three-run shot to straight-away center in the fifth inning.

Freshman Valerie Cassell (Edison, N.J.) entered the pitching circle for the Cougars in the fifth inning and was highly effective in her collegiate debut. After allowing her first runner to reach, she retired the next five batters she faced by herself by way of three strikeouts and two ground balls back at her.

The Cougars continue play in the Classic with a pair of games on Saturday. CofC is slated to face East Tennessee State at 2 p.m. and Syracuse immediately afterwards.

Kansas 6, Chattanooga 1

AUBURN, Ala.-- The Chattanooga Lady Mocs softball team (1-5) suffered a 6-1 loss to the Kansas Jayhawks (6-1) Friday night in their first game of the Auburn University Tiger Invitational in Auburn, Ala. It's the third UTC loss in as many games.

Starting pitcher Taylor Deason (Clarksville, Tenn.) got her second start of the season and fourth appearance. Head Coach Frank Reed also made a small defensive change, playing senior Sara Poteat (Thomaston, Ga.) at shortstop for the first time since her sophomore year. Freshman Alyssa Taylor (Orange, Calif.) got the start at second base.

The Lady Mocs fell behind by one run in the bottom of the first inning before Kansas tacked on four more in the second inning. Two hits, an error, walk and a hit batter set up the four-run Kansas inning. Allowing just three hits, Deason was pulled in the second after the Jayhawks were able to score five runs off the sophomore.

Rachel Albritton (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) entered in the game in the second inning and allowed an inherited runner to come around on a single, but the freshman recorded two outs to get Chattanooga out of the long frame.

The Lady Mocs got on the board in the top of the third inning after Poteat walked on four pitches. A batter later, Kasey Tydingco (Fairfield, Calif.) singled up the middle to advance Poteat to second base. With two on, freshman Anyssa Robles (Hoschton, Ga.) roped a single down the leftfield line to score Poteat from second.

Kansas extended its lead to 6-1 in the fourth inning when leadoff hitter Alex Jones reached on a hit-by-pitch. A passed ball moved Jones to second before a single from first baseman Maddie Stein drove in the Jayhawks' sixth run of the game.

Neither team was able to put a run across in the fifth and sixth innings, and the Jayhawks shut the Lady Mocs down in the top of the seventh inning to slam the door on the win.

Kansas pitcher Alicia Pille threw seven innings, allowing just four hits and an earned run. Pille fanned nine batters.

Chattanooga continues the Tiger Invitational Saturday at 4 p.m. as the Lady Mocs take on Indiana State. Following the matchup with the Sycamores, UTC will face off against the Tennessee State Tigers, scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. Chattanooga wraps up the weekend Sunday at 3 p.m. as they take on the