Chattanooga 3, Butler 1
Chattanooga 5, Northwestern State 2
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The Chattanooga Mocs softball team claimed its first two wins of 2014 at Frost Stadium it its first two games of the Frost Classic in Chattanooga, Tenn., Friday afternoon.  The Mocs took a 3-1 win over Butler in the opener and a 5-2 victory against Northwestern State in the night-cap.

Referring to Chattanooga’s three-error game against Butler in the 4 p.m. slot of the tournament, Reed’s Mocs were able to out-slug the Bulldogs and take a two-run win despite defensive flaws.  Junior Taylor Deason held Butler to just one hit over 5.1 innings of work to pick up her third win of the season, and hits from five different UTC batters was enough to lift the Mocs over Bulldogs’ pitcher Kristin Gutierrez.

Among the clutch hits was a double to left from junior Sarah Beth Roberts in the bottom of the third inning.  The third baseman lined a laser-shot over the head of the left fielder to drive in Chattanooga’s first two runs of the game. Both Sam Taylor and Alyssa Taylor scored on the extra-base hit after walking and singling, respectively.

Sophomore Jenny Garcia tagged a hard-hit double down the line in left in the fourth, stole third and then scored on a Kaiti Dutton single up the middle to tack on the Mocs’ third run.

Chattanooga then defeated Northwestern State 5-2 that included a first-career homerun from the Mocs’ sophomore shortstop Criket Blanco and a strong start from sophomore pitcher Katie Henderson.

Blanco put UTC on the board quickly in the bottom of the first inning with a two-run blast over left-center.  It was the sophomore’s team-leading 10th and 11th RBIs and Chattanooga’s eighth team-homer of the season, putting UTC up 2-0 early in the game.

Dutton began another two-run inning in the third by reaching on an error to the third baseman.  The Taylors followed up with back-to-back bunt singles to load the bases and sophomore Anyssa Robles delivered the first blow with a hit up the middle to score Dutton.  Blanco was credited with her third RBI of the night and drove in the game’s fourth run on a groundout to third to score Sam Taylor.

A fielder’s choice off the bat of Alyssa Taylor led to Chattanooga’s fifth run, scoring Garcia from third in the bottom of the fourth to give the Mocs their winning total.  The Lady Demons make their run in the third inning on two hits to score two runs, but Mocs’ starting pitcher Henderson extinguished the fire as part of her two-run, six-strikeout outing. 

 

Auburn 3, Samford 0
AUBURN, Ala. - The Samford University softball team fell 3-0 to Auburn University in the nightcap on day one of the Wilson/DeMarini Classic at Jane B. Moore Field on Friday, Sept. 21.

The Bulldogs (9-3) defense held a potent Tigers (11-1-1) offense, average of 9.36 runs per game, to its second lowest run total of the season but the fire power from the circle by Lexi Davis (6-1) proved to be too much for Samford tonight as Davis recorded a career-high 13 strikeouts for AU.

Samford reached base safely seven times on six hits in the contest and were able to put three runners into scoring position.

The Tigers immediately jumped out on top 2-0 in the bottom of the first inning to put starting pitcher Mollie Hanson (5-3) and the Bulldog defense in a bind. Auburn loaded the bases and scored two runs off a Maria Mitchell single to right field.

Auburn tacked on another run in the bottom of the third inning on a Kasey Cooper solo home run to straight away center field.

Abby Adamsled the way for Samford at the plate going 2-for-3 with Megan Dowdy closely behind going 2-for-4 and picked up her ninth stolen base of the season.

Hanson scattered five hits and only allowed two walks in the contest.

 

Georgia Southern 3, Coastal Carolina 0
Georgia Southern 4, Troy 3
GAINESVILLE, FLA.– Georgia Southern Softball opened the UF Lipton Invitational in style with a 3-0 win over Coastal Carolina and a 4-3 victory over Troy.

Georgia Southern needed nearly two hours to play a game which lasted nearly seven hours thanks to a lengthy rain delay in the sixth inning. The Eagles survived the storm and took a 3-0 win over Coastal Carolina to open the Lipton Invitational.

The Eagles got all three of their runs in the fifth with the first two coming off a triple by Breanna McLendon. An error later in the inning plated McLendon to account for the balance of Georgia Southern’s scoring in the game.

Three runs was all Sarah Purvis needed as the tossed her second shutout of the season. She pitched around five Chanticleer hits to improve to 4-2 on the season.

Friday’s second game was a 4-3 come-from-behind victory over future Sun Belt Conference foe Troy. The Eagles pounded out five hits and overcame three defensive errors to pick up the victory to move to 8-3 on the season.

Troy posted a 2-0 lead with single runs in the first and third innings.

Kourtny Thomas did the damage for the Eagles, hitting he first career grand slam in the fifth inning. It was the first slam for the Eagles since Marie Fogle hit one on April 2, 2011.

The Trojans got another run in the bottom of the fifth, but pitcher Brooke Red stymied Troy’s offense down the stretch, holding them to six hits while striking out six for her third victory of the season in the circle.

Appalachian State 5, Murray State 0
Lipscomb 9, Appalachian State 2
SOUTHAVEN, Miss. – Appalachian State University softball began the Blues City Classic with a double header on the opening day of the tournament on Friday. The Mountaineers challenged the Racers of Murray State in the first game of the double header and Lipscomb in game two of the day. App State defeated Murray State 5-0 in game one and fell to Lipscomb 9-2 in game two.

The Mountaineers (2-6) got off to a fast start against the Racers (5-4) in the first inning. Cynthia Gomez got on with a bunt single and advanced to second on an error by Maggie Glass at third base. During Sarah Warnock’s at-bat, Gomez advanced to third on a wild pitch and later scored on a Warnock double to left center field. Lindsay Loudermilk then singled through the left side and advanced Warnock to third base. Ashley Seering was able to place a sac fly to right field and scored Warnock for a 2-0 lead.

Heading into the third inning, Gomez raked a double into left center field to start the third inning for the Apps followed up by Warnock’s second base hit of the afternoon to advance Gomez to third base. Loudermilk followed both hits with a single up the middle to drive in Gomez and bring the score to 3-0 in favor of App State. After a Seering walk loaded the bases, a wild pitch to Caroline Rogers would score Warnock from third to make it 4-0 Mountaineers.

In the top half of the fifth, Warnock advanced all the way to third base but the Mountaineers couldn’t push across the run. After App State made quick work of the Racers in the bottom half, Cara Parker led off the top of the sixth with a double smoked off of the fence in left field. Caroline Reid would hit a well hit sac fly to left field to score Parker from third and make the score 5-0 Appalachian.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Shivaun Landeros surrendered her first hit on the afternoon but did not allow a runner past second base. With no threat in the top half of the seventh from the Mountaineers, Landeros would head back out to the circle and would finish off the Racers.

Landeros (2-4) pitched her third complete game of the season and earn her second win of the year allowing one hit while striking out seven. Gomez finished with a team best three hits going 3-for-4 and scored two runs. Warnock and Loudermilk each picked up two hits with an RBI and Rogers and Parker picking up a hit a piece.

In game two against Lipscomb, true freshman Sydney Laws got the starting nod for the Mountaineers (2-7). The Bisons (9-1) got started early with three hits and scored the first run of the game to take a 1-0 lead heading into the bottom of the first.

Dani Heichen (Pembroke Pines, Fla./Pembroke Pines Charter) got the Mountaineers started with a lead off base hit in the bottom of the first and then proceeded to steal her second base of the season. Brianne Welch would make a tremendous catch along the fence in foul territory on Warnock with Heichen advancing to third on the play. Loudermilk followed that up connecting on her first home run of the season to right-center field to give the Mountaineers a 2-1 lead.

In the second inning, Laws would escape a Bisons threat with runners on second and third without allowing a run to cross. Heather Parker made quick work of the Mountaineers in the bottom of the second to move it along to the third inning. In the third, Lipscomb would connect on three straight hits to start the inning and tie the game at 2-2. The Bisons would tack on just one more after loading the bases to take a 3-2 lead. App State would get singles from Kristen Terry and Warnock but wouldn’t be able to score in the third.

In the fourth, Lipscomb would use an Appalachian error and then a double from Gracey Aguirre to drive in Paige Neely to take a 4-2 lead. The Bisons would tack on two more in the inning with RBIs from Kelsey Cartwright and Rena’ Cothron before Landeros came into relieve Laws. The Mountaineers would get a walk from Ashley Best in the inning but nothing more.

Landeros made quick work of the Bisons in the top half of the fifth. Terry led off the bottom half with a slap single to left field but wouldn’t advance past second base. In the sixth, Landeros continued her dominance in the circle getting a 1-2-3 inning, while Parker did the same getting a 1-2-3 inning of her own.

After three hits to start the inning, the Bisons’ Haley Elliott hit a sac fly to right field, which was then followed by an App error that led to two more runs crossing the plate. Lipscomb would take a 9-2 lead into the bottom of the seventh. Best would single, but that’s the best the Apps could muster in the seventh and would fall 9-2.

Laws pitched 3.2 innings allowing three earned runs before Landeros relieved her. Loudermilk led the Apps with both RBIs on the day with a two-run homer. Terry led the Mountaineers in hits with two, finishing 2-for-3 for the game.

 

Furman 2, Winthrop 0
Furman 12, USC Upstate 0
Spartanburg, S.C. – Junior Shelby Parker celebrated her 21st birthday on Friday by hurling a five-inning no-hitter, and Furman launched three home runs in a 12-0 victory over the Liberty Flames at USC Upstate’s Spartan Classic at Cyrill Stadium.

The shutout, Furman’s second of the day, improved the Paladins to 3-5 while Liberty slipped to 2-7.

Parker (2-2), a native of Cherokee, N.C., fanned six batters and issued just two walks to notch her first career no-hitter and second shutout of the week.  The right-hander scattered three hits and fanned 13 in an eight-inning shutout of Presbyterian on Wednesday.

Natalie Clemmons put the Paladins in front in the top of the second with a towering two-run homer down the left field line.  

Furman put the game out of reach in the fourth by plating nine runs on six hits.  Taylor Jenkins and Andrea Abbatiello opened the inning with back-to-back triples to extend the lead to 3-0 before Abbatiello scored on a double steal attempt.  Clemmons walked and Candace Johnson registered her first career hit with a single to center field to set the table for Sieara Bishop’s three-run blast to left to push the lead to 7-0.  

After reliever Alyssa DiMartino loaded the bases by walking two batters and allowing a single to Ambree Muller, Jenkins lifted a sacrifice fly to left and Abbatiello followed with her second extra base hit of the day, a two-run double to left.  Abbatiello came around to score on the play when the third baseman’s throw to second base sailed into right field.

Annah Jo Brittingham (1-4) allowed eight runs on eight hits in 4.1 innings to take the loss for Liberty.  

Abbatiello went 2-for-3 with a double, triple and three RBI to pace the Paladins’ offense.  Nikki Legg and Candace Johnson also collected a pair of hits.

Senior Lauren Collier tossed a six-hit shutout and fanned nine batters to lead Furman to a 2-0 victory over Winthrop in the opening game of the Spartan Classic on Friday afternoon at USC Upstate’s Cyrill Stadium.

Furman (2-5) manufactured all the offense it would need in the top half of the first inning when leadoff hitter  Sieara Bishop reached on an infield single and Ambree Muller followed two batters laster with a two-run blast to left field.  Muller went 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBI while Bishop notched a hit and a base on balls.

Collier, who improved to 1-3 in the circle, did not issue a walk in seven innings in the circle and got help from catcher Hannah Pace, who threw out a pair of attempted base stealers.

Sutton Watson (3-2) took the loss for the Eagles, allowing two runs on four hits over seven innings of work.  The right-hander struck out five Paladins and issued one walk.

Paige Haley led the Winthrop (3-7) offense with a 2-for-3 effort at the plate.

Elon 6, Niagra 5
ELON, N.C. – Emily Cameron hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth inning, scoring the winning run as the Elon University softball team defeated Niagara, 6-5, in its home opener and the first game of the Phoenix Opening Tournament on Friday, Feb. 21, at Hunt Softball Park

Cameron drove in Alaina Hall from third as Elon (6-3-1) overcame a furious rally from Niagara (0-1) in the top of the seventh inning. Heading into the inning down 4-2, the Purple Eagles scored three runs in the top of the frame and held a 5-4 lead with one out away from stealing a victory from the Phoenix.
 
Elon’s Carey Million stepped in as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the seventh with two-outs and two runners on base. Million singled to left center, driving in the tying run in Emily Roper, sending the game to extra innings.
 
Elon had plated four runs in the third inning to jump out to an early 4-0 advantage. Hall led off with a single and stole second to advance to scoring position. Cameron then drew a free pass on the next at bat followed by Roper driving a single into left center to score Hall from second for the first run of the game.
 
Grace Eng was walked to load the bases for Ali Ford and she also drew another free pass to score another run for the maroon and gold. Aly Quintana’s single to left field scored Roper to move the score to 3-0. Another walk on Johanna Spencer’s at bat with the bases loaded pushed the score to 4-0 after the end of the third.
 
Both teams went scoreless in the fourth, but Niagara finally added some runs in the top of the fifth. Ambur Farmer led off the inning with a single and scored on a one-out double by Katelyn Gruarin to put the Purple Eagles on the board. Amanda Werth’s single down the left field line scored Gruarin to trim Niagara’s deficit to two, 4-2, forcing Elon to make a change in the circle with Caitlin O’Shea coming in to relieve starter Alli Burdette.
 
O’Shea recorded the final two outs of the fifth and also pitch a scoreless sixth before running into trouble in the top of the seventh. Niagara loaded the bases with no outs before Werth singled up the middle to tie the game at 4-4. The Phoenix made another change in the circle with Chelsea White coming in for O’Shea.
 
Niagara added the go ahead run on a one-out fielder’s choice on Aileen Hinton’s at bat and the Purple Eagles jumped ahead 5-4. White and the Phoenix were able to record the final outs to move into the bottom of the inning.
 
Roper drew another walk from pitcher Jennifer Sansano to lead off the seventh inning and moved to third on a double by Eng, giving the Phoenix runners in scoring position with no outs. Niagara was able to recover and force the next two outs before Million’s heroics tied the game at 4-4. Elon could not score the winning run on the next batter and the game moved into extra innings.
 
White held the Purple Eagles scoreless in the top of the eighth giving the Phoenix a chance in the bottom half. Hall led off by reaching on a fielder’s choice and stole second to move into scoring position. Carleigh Nester singled down the left field line to move Hall over to third before Cameron hit a ball to deep left field, giving Hall an opportunity to score the winning run and give the Phoenix the 6-5 win.
 
White (2-3) earned the win in 2.0 scoreless innings with a pair of strikeouts. Burdette pitched 4.1 innings to start the game and allowed two runs, all earned while striking out three.
 
Hall and Nester went 2-for-5 at the plate to lead the team offensively for Elon. Six players contributed with an RBI for the maroon and gold.

 

USC Upstate 5, Western Carolina 0
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Western Carolina softball (0-6) fell to host USC Upstate (11-0) 5-0 Friday in the first day of action at the Spartan Classic.

Hidden amidst the three homeruns and five runs by the Spartans was Western Carolina hurler Mallory Broome's season-high seven strikeouts over USC Upstate. The Catamounts had four hits in the game and runners on base four out of the seven innings.

USC Upstate jumped on Western Carolina 2-0 off two homeruns in the first and second inning. It was the only miscues Broome committed in the first pair of innings. She recorded five strikeouts in the first six outs of the game.

Western Carolina had base runners in three of the first four innings. Senior outfielder Amelia Griffin led off with a single to start the game. Sophomore Amber Kimrey lined a two out single to right field but was left on base when freshman Courtney Price lined out to the pitcher in the second inning.

The Catamounts best scoring chance in the first four innings came in the top of the fourth. Freshman Kara Salvo drew a lead-off walk and scampered to second on a single to center field by junior catcher Heather Chastain. A pair of pop ups and a ground out by the next three Western Carolina batters halted the scoring chance.

The Spartans tacked on another run in the bottom of the fourth. After Madison Keiffer reached on a fielder's choice that erased Cheyenne Griffin, who led off with a single, Keiffer advanced to second on a Broome wild pitch. Kendall Settlemeyer hit a two-out RBI double scoring Keiffer.

Price's lead-off single gave Western Carolina another scoring chance in the bottom of the fifth. A textbook bunt by fellow freshman Whitney Haywood pushed Price to second. With one out, Griffin was thrown out by the closest of margins, at first, for the second out which moved Price to third. A line out by Karley Harkey, to centerfield, ended the inning.

The third homerun of the game, by the Spartans Shellie Robinson, with a runner on first added two more runs for USC Upstate in the bottom of the fifth.

Broome took the loss and falls to 0-3 going five innings allowing five runs on nine hits. Sigmon came into the game in the sixth inning, in relief, and sat down all three Spartan batters, strikeout out two. Sigmon has now thrown six innings in relief without yielding a run.

 

UNCG 6, Army 1
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG softball team used nine hits and six runs to defeat Army on Day One of the Spartan Classic Friday night at the UNCG Softball Stadium.

The Spartans improve to 3-5 on the season while the Black Knights fall to 0-6.

Senior Raeanne Hanks threw a complete game to earn her third win of the season. Hanks allowed just four hits and one earned run with three strikeouts. Kristen West suffered the loss in relief after three innings, allowing six hits and three earned runs. 

Freshman Tory Wright went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and two RBI. Junior Tatiana Alcala also had two hits in four at bats.

Army took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning after a two out RBI single from Kasey McCravey. Amanda Nguyen walked to start the inning but was caught stealing by sophomore Lindsay Thomas. Alee Rashenskas earned a walk and moved to second on a wild pitch. After a fly out, Rashenskas stole third to setup McCravey’s two RBI single to give the Black Knights a 1-0 lead.

In the bottom of the third inning, the Spartans tied the game at 1-1 after sophomore Nicole Thomas picked up an RBI on a bases loaded walk. Junior Dominique Madruga walked to start the inning. Sophomore Allison Geiner  earned another walk to put runners on first and second. After a fly out, both runners moved up on a wild pitch. Back-to-back walks from senior Katelyn Bedwell and Thomas tied the score at 1-1.

UNCG took control in the fourth inning with two runs, including a solo home run from Wright. Wright blasted her first career home run to open the frame and give the Spartans a 2-1 advantage. Alcala singled to left center and Madruga reached on an error to put runners at second and third. After an out, Lindsay Thomas singled up the middle to score Alcala to push UNCG’s lead to 3-1.

The Spartans added three insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth off three hits and two Army errors. Geiner reached on an error to start the inning. Lindsay Thomas doubled off the wall in right to put runners on second and third. Bedwell reached on a dropped fly ball leading to a run for UNCG. Nicole Thomas roped an RBI double to right field to push the Spartans lead to 5-1. After an out, Wright singled to right center to score the final run of the inning.

In the seventh inning, Hanks worked around back-to-back walks to start the inning. Rachael Dehlinger lined out to second and Nguyen was out on a sacrifice bunt. Rashenskas grounded out to second base to end the game.