Georgia Southern 7, UNCG 3
STATESBORO, Ga. – Georgia Southern Softball delivered five runs in the sixth inning to snatch a 7-3 win over UNCG in the series final on Sunday afternoon at Eagle Field. Three runs for the Spartans in the opening half inning put the visitors up early, but the five-run sixth gave the Eagles the win and a series victory in the penultimate round of SoCon play.
With the win, Georgia Southern moves to 12-8 in league play and third place in the league standings behind Appalachian State (16-5) and College of Charleston (13-7). The Eagles are 26-26 overall in 2013, while UNCG falls to 11-9 in league play and 34-16 overall. The Spartans are in fifth place, trailing Chattanooga on percentage points at 10-8 with the Mocs having all three games rained out this weekend.
UNCG got on the board early with three runs in the first inning. Walks to the first two Spartan hitters opened the door for Katelyn Bedwell to drive in the first run off a single. Heather Robb pushed two more across with a double to right field, but the UNCG shortstop was cut down at third base by Kaitlyn Johnson’s second outfield assist of the weekend to keep the score at 3-0 through a half inning of play.
In the bottom of the first, Alexa Lewis worked a leadoff walk and went to third on a throwing error by the pitcher on Lexi Allen’s sacrifice bunt attempt. Lewis scampered home on Kourtny Thomas’ sacrifice fly to right, cutting the UNCG lead to 3-1.
Brianna McLendon sparked the Eagles in the third inning with a leadoff single to open the frame. She reached third later in the inning and was able to cruise home when Allen stole second and the catcher’s throw sailed into centerfield. McLendon’s eighth run scored this season cut the lead to 3-2.
Georgia Southern’s five run sixth inning put the Eagles up 7-3 entering the seventh inning. Shelby Morrill’s leadoff single was followed by two walks and two hit batters to give the Eagles a 4-3 lead. Kaitlyn Johnson’s full count walk and AJ Hamilton’s hit by pitch drove in the runs. Pinch hitter Gabrielle Story pushed another run home with a sacrifice fly and two more scored on Alexa Lewis’ double.
Despite UNCG putting two runners on base in the seventh inning, Sarah Purvis picked up the win with 6.2 innings of relief work. She allowed just three hits and no runs in her outing while fanning nine Spartans. The junior hurler picked up her 13th win of the season and lowered her season ERA to 2.27. In SoCon play, Purvis is now 7-1 with a 1.37 ERA.
Cougars see winning streak snapped at 13 games
Western Carolina 3, College of Charleston 1
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – The College of Charleston softball team fell, 3-1, in the Southern Conference series finale against Western Carolina at Patriots Point on Sunday afternoon. The Cougars outhit the Catamounts but failed to capitalize on their base runners which cost them the game.
CofC (32-17, 13-7 SoCon) saw its 13 game winning streak come to a close in the loss. The Cougars had already claimed the series with Saturday’s doubleheader sweep, however.
CofC was good for 10 hits – three more than the Catamounts – but was plagued by 14 stranded base runners in the contest.
Mackenzie Maples (Corona, Calif.) paced the Cougar bats in going 3-for-4 on the day which sent her batting average over the .300 mark on the season. Chandler Frisbie (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and Ashton Jarrett (Hanahan, S.C.) both had two hits as well.
The Cougars reached at least one runner every inning and left the bases loaded in the third, in addition to stranding two runners five different times.
The game was scoreless until the top of the third when WCU’s Megan Crowe lined a single off the tip of the glove of Cougar pitcher Hope Klicker (Walla Walla, Wash.) to lead off the inning. The Cougars were unable to record outs on back-to-back ground balls which loaded the bases, and Taylor Sigmon snuck a grounder through the middle of the infield to bring two runs to the plate.
The Cougars would cut the lead to one in the bottom half of the inning after loading the bases themselves, using a Lizzy Vaughn (Placerville, Calif.) walk and singles through the left side by Maples and Frisbie. Kristy Giragosian (Charlotte, N.C.) spoiled several pitches in an 11-pitch at bat before ultimately watching ball four for the RBI base on balls.
WCU took the run back in the next inning when Heather Chastain walked and Crowe doubled down the left field line, and the run scored on a groundball to short stop later in the inning.
Down 3-1, the Cougars put the tying run on the bases in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, but lacked the timely hits needed to mount a comeback effort.