Appalachian State 4, Chattanooga 1Chattanooga 4, Appalachian State 1BOONE, N.C. – The Chattanooga Mocs softball team settled for a Saturday split with Appalachian State to bring both teams’ Southern Conference records even at 1-1. The Mountaineers won the first contest 4-1 before Chattanooga turned around and claimed the second game 4-1 over Appalachian.
Chattanooga suffered its first Southern Conference loss of the season in a 4-1 defeat to Appalachian State in the first game of the Saturday doubleheader. Four errors and just two Mocs’ hits led to the Chattanooga downfall.
Despite giving up just one earned run over 4.1 innings of work, starting pitcher Taylor Deason suffered her sixth loss of 2014. The junior whiffed four batters and allowed just three hits. Sophomore Katie Henderson came on in relief of Deason, throwing 1.2 innings, and yielding both a hit and a run.
The Mountaineers took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning on two hits and two errors. A single from right fielder Dani Heichen singled to begin the inning and stole second. A fielding error moved Heichen to third and a fielding error, off the bat of second baseman Cynthia Gomez, allowed both runners aboard to score.
Chattanooga battled for one run in the top of the fourth on two hits. Alyssa Taylor singled to second base and advanced to second on a fielder’s choice. In scoring position, Taylor came around to score on a Sarah Beth Roberts double to center to cut the lead in half.
Leading by one, App added on two more runs in the fourth and sixth innings to put the game out of reach.
The second game saw Chattanooga down ASU with the same score as the first game, this time with the Mocs coming out on top. The one-run complete game from Henderson was topped off by a first-career homerun from senior Kaiti Dutton
The home team jumped on the board first with a run in the bottom of the third inning. With one out, catcher Sarah Warnock slammed a solo-homerun to dead-center to put App up 1-0.
Despite the deficit, Chattanooga rallied back with two runs in the top of the fourth on just one hit. Anyssa Robles walked with one out and Marina Wilkerson pinch ran for the catcher. Shortstop Criket Blanco blooped a single to right to put two on. A sacrifice bunt from Tyler Templet (Woodstock, Ga.) scored the first run and an RBI groundout from sophomore Amanda Ross gave the Mocs a 2-1 lead.
UTC added on its insurance runs in the seventh inning on a Dutton solo homerun to left. With the wind blowing out, the senior’s high fly found the jet stream and carried out of Sywassink-Lloyd Family Satdium.
The fourth run scored on a walk from the Taylor group. Sam Taylor walked and Alyssa Taylor lined a double to left to score Sam from first.
Henderson came away with the win after fanning nine Appalachian State batters. The sophomore also allowed just five hits and one earned run.
Georgia Southern 3, UNCG 2Georgia Southern 4, UNCG 3GREENSBORO, N.C. – Georgia Southern opened its final SoCon Campaign with a doubleheader win over UNCG on Saturday at the UNCG Softball Stadium by 3-2 and 4-3 score lines. The wins secure the sixth-straight regular season series win against the Spartans as the Eagles go to 18-7 on the season and 2-0 in league play. UNCG falls to 10-12 on the year and 0-2 in the SoCon. The teams wrap-up the three-game set on Sunday with an 11 a.m. game.
Georgia Southern got the day started with a 3-2 win over the Spartans in a game that saw the home team creep back in with a pair of late runs. Ultimately normal service was resumed as Sarah Purvis picked up her fifth win in as many appearances against the Spartans and improved to 9-3 on the season.
Kourtny Thomas got the Eagles off the mark with a solo home run in the second inning. It was her 28th career home run and ninth this season as the senior shortstop went deep against starting pitcher Raeanne Hanks for the second-straight at bat in Greensboro. It was just the second long-ball allowed by Hanks this season in over 62 innings of work.
Georgia Southern capitalized on a pair of walks in the third, including a two-out intentional pass to Thomas, to extend the lead to 2-0. Taylor Rogers drove in the run when she was hit by a pitch with two outs in the frame.
Southern got back in the scoring swing in the fifth by taking advantage of a botched double play. A fielding error kept two runners on base for Thomas when she drove in her second run of the game with a single that was rifled up the middle. The Eagles, however stranded two runners in scoring position and extended the advantage to 3-0.
A leadoff double, followed by an illegal pitch to advance the runner allowed UNCG to drive in their first run of the day in the fifth with a sacrifice fly. One run, however, was all the Spartans would get in the inning as the home side cut the Eagle advantage to 3-1.
UNCG added another run to start the bottom of the seventh when leadoff hitter Danielle Vega hit a home run to left. The Eagles got a fly out to the next batter, but a walk put the tying run on first. A single by No. 9 hitter Emily Lopez put runners on first and second with the top of the order coming up. A pair of infield pop ups dismissed the UNCG threat.
For the second-straight game, Kourtny Thomas opened the scoring early for the good guys with a Texas Leaguer to left which sent Emily Snider in from third. A fielding error by the UNCG second baseman later in the inning allowed Shelby Morrill to score from second with two outs. The runs gave the Eagles a 2-0 lead with the Spartans yet to bat.
UNCG leveled the game in the fifth with a single to the pitcher and a walk to put ducks on the pond for Katelyn Bedwell. The Spartan slugger, who entered the day as the league’s top hitter, poked a ball to left for a double that scored both runners and tied the game at 2-2 with two outs.
Starting pitcher Brooke Red settled down to strike out the final batter of the inning and keep the game tied at 2-2 through five complete.
UNCG got four hits in the sixth, including a pair with two outs to take its first lead of the day, 3-2. An Allison Geiner single to second base drove in the go-ahead run as the Eagles went to bat in the seventh.
Relief pitcher Raeanne Hanks issued a pair of one-out walks to give the Eagles life in the seventh. Thomas advanced the runners and Morgan Robinson did the damage, driving both in with a soft liner through the right side. Her single gave the Eagles a 4-3 lead though the middle of the seventh.
Red dealt three strikeouts in the seventh and worked around a single and a hit batter to secure the win. She finished the day with a career-best 12 strikeouts and improved to 7-3 on the season with the win.
Elon 2, Western Carolina 1Western Carolina 3, Elon 0CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Jordan Garrett tossed a one-hit shutout as Western Carolina softball took the Southern Conference series with Elon Saturday at the Catamount Softball Complex. After winning Friday’s game, 4-3 in 10 innings, the Catamounts dropped game two 2-1 before bouncing back, on the arm of Garrett, to win game three 3-0.
The Catamounts improve to 11-15 on the season and 2-1 in Southern Conference action. Elon falls to 16-8-1 on the year and 1-2 in conference.
Elon scored its only two runs of the game in the first inning. The Phoenix got to Catamount freshman pitcher Courtney Buchanan in the first inning, pinning two runs on her, including a two-run homerun by Carleigh Nester. Buchanan was replaced by sophomore Mallory Broome with two outs and two runners on. Broome struck out Lauren Oldham to end the inning.
Elon did not find home plate again as Broome tossed 6.1 innings of shutout ball allowing just two hits and striking out five.
Western Carolina out-hit Elon 9-5 in the game but the Catamounts also couldn’t find home plate to score. The Catamounts had base runners in six of the seven innings and finally scored in the bottom of the seventh.
The Catamounts began a seventh inning rally when Makenzi McAteer led off with a double to left field. With one out, senior Amelia Griffin reached first on an Elon error and the Catamounts had runners on second and third when Griffin moved to second and McAteer moved to third. Sophomore Karley Harkey hit a sacrifice fly to score McAteer and the Catamounts sliced the Elon lead to one, 2-1. Kara Salvo kept the inning alive when she singled to left field but the game ended on a ground out by Taylor Sigmon.
Buchanan took the loss falling to 4-2 on the year. Griffin, Salvo and Sigmon were each 2-for-4 in the game.
Garrett tossed her second straight complete game, and recorded her second shutout of the season, when she closed down Elon in game two of the doubleheader Saturday.
The Henderson, N.C. native had a no-hitter going through five innings before the Phoenix’s Alaina Hall singled through the left side with two outs. Garrett struck out Emily Cameron to end the inning.
Garrett sat down 17 of the first 18 batters she faced before Hall notched Elon’s only hit of the game. Elon had only three base runners in the game, and Hall was ironically on base twice, as she also reached first on a Catamount error to start the game. The only other Phoenix base runner was Grace Eng, drawing a walk, in the top of the seventh with two outs.
Again Garrett has an answer for allowing a base runner. She promptly stuck out senior Ali Ford looking to end the game. That last strikeout, against Ford, was Garrett’s seventh of the contest.
At the plate, Western Carolina gave Garrett an early 1-0 cushion as it scored a run in the top of the first. Griffin’s single bunt and Harkey’s single through the right side put runners on first and second for the Catamounts. Salvo flied out to right field, but a mishandled ball by short-stop Ford allowed Griffin to score.
Elon pitcher Caitlin O’Shea got out of a few jams in innings two through four before Western Carolina struck again with two runs in the bottom of the fifth.
Again the scoring started with a Griffin single. A sacrifice bunt by Harkey pushed Griffin to second and she promptly stole third. Salvo reached first on a fielder’s choice when the Elon second baseman decided to hold the ball to keep Griffin at third. Courtney Price hit an RBI single to right field scoring Griffin. Amber Kimrey also notched an RBI single, scoring pinch runner Lexi Ross, as her ball lined past the Elon pitcher O’Shea.
Garrett improves to 4-9 on the season. O’Shea takes the loss falling to 4-2, tossing 6.0 innings, before being lifted in the seventh for relief pitcher Alli Burdette.
Western Carolina had nine hits in the game. Griffin, Price, Kimrey and Haywood each had a pair of hits.
Furman 4, Samford 0Furman 5, Samford 1Greenville, S.C. – Sophomore Sieara Bishop homered in both games and senior Lauren Collier notched a game one victory and game two save to lead Furman to a 4-0, 5-1 doubleheader sweep of Samford in Southern Conference softball action on Saturday afternoon at Pepsi Stadium.
The sweep improved the Paladins to 14-11 overall and 2-0 in league play. Samford dropped to 20-7 overall and 0-2 in the SoCon. The Paladins and Bulldogs are scheduled to conclude their three-game weekend series with a 1 p.m. contest on Sunday.
In the opening game of the day, Collier went 2-for-4 at the plate with a two-run double and tossed a four-hit shutout to pace the Paladins to victory in the SoCon opener.
The Paladins took advantage of a two-out error in the first as Collier drilled a 3-2 pitch off of the left-centerfield wall to score Elise Smith and Bishop to stake Furman to a 2-0 lead. Ambree Muller’s sacrifice fly in the third inning extended the lead to 3-0, and Bishop capped the scoring with a solo shot to left-center, her second of the season, in the bottom of the fifth.
Furman pounded out 10 hits against Samford starter Mollie Hanson, including two apiece from Taylor Jenkins, Bishop, Collier and Natalie Clemmons.
Collier fanned eight Bulldogs without issuing a walk to improve to 8-5 in the circle. Hanson allowed four runs, one earned, on 10 hits over six innings to slip to 10-5. She walked two and struck out five.
In game two, Bishop broke a 1-1 tie with a solo home run in the bottom of the third inning and the Paladins exploded for three runs in the sixth inning en route to a 5-1 win.
A sacrifice fly for each team knotted the game at 1-1 before Bishop hammered a 3-2 pitch from Grey Adams over the left-centerfield wall with two outs in the bottom of the third to give the Paladins the lead for good.
Trailing 2-1, Samford put runners on first and second base with two outs in the top of the fifth, but Collier came on in relief of starter Shelby Parker and induced a ground out to shortstop to end the inning. A hit batter and a Caroline Wilder double put runners at second and third with one away in the sixth, but Collier fanned pinch hitter Shelby Scott and got Miranda Abbie to ground back to the circle to strand the runners.
Muller opened the bottom of the frame with a triple to right-center and scored on Hannah Pace’s sacrifice squeeze bunt with one out. Two walks, two illegal pitches, a passed ball and a throwing error allowed the Paladins to plate two more runs in the sixth before reliever Rebecca Leonard was able to retire the side.
Parker, who surrendered only one run on five hits in four and 2/3 innings, grabbed the win for the Paladins to improve to 4-5. She walked just one batter and registered four strikeouts. Collier allowed just the Wilder double over two and 1/3 innings in the circle to pick up her third save of the season. She fanned two without allowing a base on balls.
Bishop went 1-for-2 with the solo homer and a pair of walks to lead Furman at the plate. Wilder finished 2-for-3 with a double and a triple for Samford.
Adams (6-1) took the loss for Samford after giving up four runs on four hits in five and 2/3 innings. She walked seven batters without recording a strikeout. Bulldog pitching finished with nine walks and no strikeouts in game two.