College of Charleston 9, Western Carolina 1
College of Charleston 2, Western Carolina 1
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – The College of Charleston softball seniors celebrated their Senior Day in style, guiding the team to two victories over Western Carolina in a Southern Conference doubleheader at Patriots Point on Saturday afternoon. The Cougars exploded for a 9-1, five-inning win in the opener and outlasted the Catamounts for a 2-1 victory in game two.
CofC (32-16, 13-6 SoCon) has now won 13 straight and 17-of-18 in the month of April. The Cougars will look to complete the series sweep with a single game on Sunday at 1 p.m.
The seniors came up big for the Cougars in the twinbill, with six of nine runs being driven in by senior RBIs in game one, and Stephanie Saylors (Easley, S.C.) pitching a complete game to keep the Cougars in game two.
Kristy Giragosian (Charlotte, N.C.), Ashton Jarrett (Hanahan, S.C.) and Courtney Clark (Tampa, Fla.) combined for the six Cougar RBIs which led to the run-rule shortened game one victory.
Sophomore Hope Klicker (Walla Walla, Wash.) was brilliant in the pitching circle and held the Catamounts to just one run while striking out four to earn her 17th complete game of the season.
Saylors struck out six hitters and worked great out of jams to keep the Cougars in a game-two pitchers’ duel until her offense sprung for runs in the sixth and seventh innings to walk off with the win.
Chandler Frisbie (Lawrenceville, Ga.) was 2-for-3 with an RBI to account for two of CofC’s three hits in the second game, and Carly Corthell (Reno, Nev.) provided the walk-off RBI single which won the game with two outs in the seventh.
“It was an emotional day with Senior Day but I knew they would step up,” said head coach Shelly Hoerner. “They had a fantastic day and all four of them contributed to both our wins.
“Obviously the second game was a tough one; their pitcher threw a fantastic game and kept us off balance, but we persevered and got the job done. It’s always great to find a way to get it done, and we did just that.
“Tomorrow is going to be another tough game and we have to come out with fire and bring our A-game. Western Carolina is a very good team and we have to step up to the occasion.”
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON: 9, WESTERN CAROLINA: 1 (5 INNINGS)
The Cougars jumped on the throttle in game one with a five-run first inning and never looked back after a five-run first inning which set the tone for the game.
Jarrett led off the inning with a single down the leftfield line, and Kelsey Hodgson (Woodstock, Ga.) drew a walk before Frisbie loaded the bases with an infield single. Rebecca Mueller (Fair Oaks, Calif.) took a pitch to the helmet which plated a run, and Allison Pedigo (Scottsville, Ky.) methodically drew a walk to plate a second. With two outs in the inning, Giragosian doubled over the head of the center fielder to clear the bases and give the Cougars the early 5-0 lead.
CofC continued to offensive output in the third with four singles to left field, the fourth coming off the bat of Jarrett and driving home two runs.
The Cougars tacked on two more in the following inning with a singled through the left side by Frisbie. Maples had already beaten out an infield single, but the throw got away from the Catamounts and allowed Frisbie to score all the way from first. Clark then pinch hit and drove a ball back up the middle which plated the ninth and final run for the Cougars.
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON: 2, WESTERN CAROLINA: 1
The runs – and hits – were much harder to come by in the second game, but Saylors kept her team in the game by keeping the Catamounts silent. Saylors shined under pressure, working calmly out of jams and causing the Catamounts to strand 10 runners.
Neither team could muster a run until Vaughn singled and stole second in the sixth, and Frisbie drove her in with a single to left, only the second Cougar hit of the game.
WCU would not go quietly, however, and equalized in the top of the seventh after Karley Harkey, who led off the inning with a single to right, scored on a Cougar error on a ground ball which was the result of the ball striking the batter who was running to first base. The Cougars maintained composure though and kept the game tied when they threw the second runner out at the plate on the very same play.
The set the stage for a walk-off seventh inning, and the Cougars did just that when Mueller was hit by a pitch, took second on a sacrifice execution by Giragosian, and scored on Corthell’s RBI single which touched just inside the leftfield line.
Furman 3, Elon 2
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Elon softball team fell to Furman on Saturday, April 27, in the form of a 3-2 setback in the first game of an original doubleheader. The Phoenix (16-30, 5-14 Southern Conference) and Paladins (25-24, 8-10 SoCon) completed action of the opening game despite a three-hour rain delay.
The Paladins jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the second inning of the second game before officials suspended play due to darkness. Play will resume will resume tomorrow, April 27, at 11 a.m. with the series finale to follow.
Game One
Furman 3, Elon 2
The Paladins scored the first run of the game in the bottom of the opening frame. Nikki Legg reached on a single to the pitcher and advanced to third after an errant throw to move into immediate scoring position. She would cross home plate on a Stephanie Field sacrifice fly to left field and Furman took an early 1-0 lead.
After a scoreless second and top half of the third, Elon starter Chelsea White was able to induce the first two outs to begin to bottom of the third before increasing rainfall threatened the action. Furman singled on three straight at bats to load the bases and was in a 3-1 count on the next batter before the game was delayed due to the heavy rainfall.
The game was resumed after a two hour and 58 minute wait, but Furman drew a walk on the first pitch to score a run and increase its lead to 2-0 after the third.
White kept the Phoenix within reach with her strong play in the circle. The sophomore allowed only two hits over the next three innings and was backed up with strong defensive play in the field, including a double play in the bottom of the fifth. Field singled to right leading off the inning and gave the Paladins a runner on first. After striking out the next batter, White was able to force the next batter to popup to Camille Hill, who then threw out Field at first to end the inning.
In the top of the sixth, Elon’s Grace Eng and Aly Quintana both reached on a walk and a single to lead off the inning, respectively. The pair advanced into scoring position with one out after a Sarah Little ground out to the shortstop, but were stranded as the Paladins struck out the next two batters to escape the inning.
Elon finally got on board in the top half of the seventh. Tomeka Watson reached with two outs after an error by the third baseman that allowed Carleigh Nester to come to the plate. The junior center fielder made the Paladins pay with a home run to left center to tie the score at 2-2 and gave life to the Phoenix heading into the bottom of the seventh.
The momentum quickly faded as Sieara Bishop answered with a one-out, solo home run to left center to give the Paladins the walk-off game one win, 3-2.
Lauren Collier (13-10) earned the complete game win, allowing two runs, both unearned, on six hits with five strikeouts. White (4-14) took the loss for Elon after going 6.1 innings and allowing three runs, two earned, on nine hits.
Nester led the way offensively with her third home run in as many games and two RBI while being one of six different players to record a hit for the Phoenix.
Georgia Southern 5, UNCG 2
UNCG 2, Georgia Southern 1
STATESBORO, Ga. – Georgia Southern Softball split Saturday’s doubleheader at the friendly confines on Breast Cancer Awareness day, winning the opener 5-2 before falling 2-1 to UNCG in eight innings. The day featured a ceremonial first pitch by four-year breast cancer survivor Cheryl Allen, mother of second baseman Lexi Allen. Georgia Southern and UNCG will decide the series on Sunday at 12:00 p.m.
The split leaves Georgia Southern and UNCG tied at 11-8 in league play, deadlocked for third place. The Eagles are 25-26 on the season while the Spartans are 34-15 on the year.
– GAME ONE –
Georgia Southern overcame an early deficit in game one to take a 5-2 win. Wild pitches accounted for the first two Eagle runs, while a pair of errors in the sixth inning opened the door for a three-run frame in which GSU took the victory.
The Spartans turned a leadoff walk to start the game into a run in the first inning when Katelyn Bedwell’s sacrifice fly to right scored Aisha Figueroa. Pinch runner Kiah Ruffin scored in the third inning off an RBI single by Bedwell in the third inning to put the Spartans up 2-0 early.
The Eagles got on the board thanks to pitching miscues in the bottom of the third. Walks to three batters loaded the bases and a wild pitch allowed Alexa Lewis to cross the plate and score for Georgia Southern, cutting the lead to 2-1.
With Tabby Douberley on third base with two outs in the fourth, another wild pitch drew the Eagles level with UNCG. It was the first time this season that the Eagles scored twice off a wild pitch and just the third run all year to score off a pitching miscue.
In the sixth inning, Georgia Southern was the beneficiary of more UNCG miscues. A fielding error by the third baseman allowed Kourtny Thomas to reach base to open the inning. She was lifted for pinch runner Dominique Grossman. Shelby Morrill hit into what looked to be a 3-4 double play, but the throw down to second hit Grossman in the back and allowed the freshman to scamper to third base with one out.
Douberley’s RBI single gave GSU a 3-2 lead just minutes later. Andrea Tarashuk followed suit with a double to the gap in right which brought Douberley home for a 4-2 GSU advantage. Southern got a sacrifice fly by A.J. Hamilton later in the inning to score Tarashuk and post the 5-2 lead going into the bottom of the sixth.
UNCG put its opening two runners on base in the top of the seventh with a single and a Georgia Southern fielding error. Starting pitcher Sarah Purvis, however, was bolstered by a 5-3-6 double play followed by a foul out to the shortstop to work out of the jam and capture her 12th win of the season. She worked around five UNCG hits and did not strike out a batter for the first time this season.
– GAME TWO –
Georgia Southern dropped the second game of the day 2-1 in extra innings to fall to 4-5 this season when going to extra frames. Two hits by UNCG with two gone in the eighth did the damage for the Spartans to split the day at Eagle Field.
UNCG again took advantage of a leadoff walk to post a 1-0 lead over Georgia Southern in the first inning. The walk was followed by a fielding error, wild pitch and the RBI ground out by Bedwell to plated Figueroa.
GSU struck back in the third inning as Gabrielle Story opened the frame with a single. The junior was making her first career start, replacing Douberley at first base for the contest. Story was lifted for a pinch runner, Nicole Benton, who scored on Allen’s RBI single through the right side with one out to tie the game, 1-1.
Back-to-back singles by the top of the UNCG lineup with two outs in the eighth gave the Spartans a 2-1 lead entering the home half of the inning. An RBI single by Thomas to left field drove in Figueroa for the go-ahead run.
Lewis opened the bottom of the eighth with a single, but was doubled off when Allen’s sacrifice bunt attempt popped to the third baseman who tossed to first for the 5-4 twin-killer. A pop out to second base would end the game as Georgia Southern dropped the 2-1 loss in eight innings.
Auburn 9, Appalachian State 0
Auburn 10, Appalachian State 0
AUBURN, Ala. – Appalachian State University softball dropped is first doubleheader of the season, falling twice to Auburn at Jane B. Moore Field on Saturday. The Mountaineers fell 9-0 in five innings in game one, before dropping game two, 10-0, to the Tigers.
With the losses App State falls to 27-18 overall on the season, while Auburn improves to 30-20 overall. The powerful Mountaineer offense was held scoreless for only the third time this season as it was unable to notch any runs against the Tigers.
Game One: Auburn 9, App State 0
After starting pitcher Alissa Schoelkopf issued two-straight walks on nine pitches, Auburn would take the 3-0 lead over Appalachian when freshman Emily Carosone homered over the left center field wall with no outs in the top of the first inning.
Two more walks from Schoelkopf put runners on the base path before the Apps retired the first out of the inning. Auburn tacked on a fourth run when an App State throwing error allowed Brooke Lathan to score before Baylee Stephens singled through the right side of the field, extending the Tiger lead to five.
Auburn took the 7-0 advantage over the Mountaineers when Morgan Estell drew her second walk of the contest and Branndi Melero lined the Tigers second home run of the contest over the center field wall.
App State’s only hits came from the senior duo of Meghan Smith and Allie Cashion and sophomore Cynthia Gomez, as Smith extended her hitting streak to 10 games.
A single deep in the hole at shortstop and a walk put runners on first and second for Carosone who hit a shallow ball to the edge of the center field grass to knock in her fourth RBI of the day, allowing Auburn to take an 8-0 lead in the fourth inning.
Malero crossed the plate for the third time of the afternoon when Caitlin Schultze hit a sacrifice fly to left field, giving Auburn the 9-0 lead.
After the Apps were unable to score in the top of the fifth inning, Auburn would earn the mercy, defeating the Mountaineers 9-0 in game one.
Schoelkopf (17-10) suffered the loss in the circle as she pitched four innings with three strikeouts.
Game Two: Auburn 10, App State 0
Auburn would be the first to get on the scoreboard in game two as the first run came across the plate on an App State error.
The Tigers took a 2-0 advantage when a shallow hit single from Brooke Lathan scored Carosone from third base.
A Baylee Stephens single up the middle with one out extended the lead to 4-0 before starting pitcher Katherine Johnson struck out the second out of the inning.
Appalachian committed its second error of the inning, this time a throwing error, that allowed two runs to cross the plate and bring the Auburn lead to 6-0 before Johnson earned her second strikeout of the day.
Carosone led off the bottom of the second inning with a double to the warning track before coming around to score on a wild pitch and extend the Tiger lead to 7-0.
A single and a walk put runners on first and second before Shivaun Landeros came in to relieve Johnson. Landeros struck out the first batter she faced before Jade Rhodes singled through the left side of the field, scoring one.
The Tigers took a 9-0 advantage over the Mountaineers when Lathan hit a sacrifice fly to left field.
First baseman Caitlin Jordan lined a deep home run just fair over the left field wall to give Auburn the 10-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning over the Apps.
Freshman Ellie Manriquez tallied the only hit for Appalachian in game two as she singled in the top of the second inning.
Johnson suffered the loss in the circle going two innings in only her second decision of the 2013 season, while Landeros pitched two innings with one strikeout.