South Carolina 3, Georgia Southern 1COLUMBIA, S.C. – Georgia Southern Softball delivered another solid performance on Tuesday evening, dropping a 3-1 result to South Carolina in the second-straight game against an SEC opponent. A Gamecock home run in the third inning proved to be the difference as the Eagles dropped their second two-run game to an SEC team in the last week. The Eagles return to SoCon play for the final six games of the regular season, beginning with Senior Day on Saturday versus Chattanooga. After the Eagles (30-16) stranded a runner on first in the opening frame, South Carolina (31-17) was able to post an early 1-0 advantage in the bottom half of the first. A walk with one out worked its way to third on a double to the wall in left. A bleeder dumped into right handed the Gamecocks at 1-0 advantage through an inning of play. The Eagles answered immediately with a run in the second inning. Morgan Robinson started the frame with a single and made it to second when a throwing error allowed her to reach second. The freshman first baseman ultimately scored on AJ Hamilton’s sacrifice fly to tie the game at 1-1. In the third inning, Sarah Mooney put the Gamecocks back on top with a two-run home run. Her 10th home run of the season gave the home side a 3-1 lead. Sarah Purvis struck out six batters and held the Gamecocks to just five hits on the day, but suffered the loss to fall to 16-10 on the season. South Carolina’s Julie Sarrat allowed three hits and the unearned run with one strikeout to improve to 15-10 on the year. Nickie Blue pitched the final two innings without allowing a run for her sixth save of the season. Tennessee 8, Furman 0Knoxville, Tenn. – The eighth-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols plated six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to break open a 2-0 game and down Furman, 8-0, in non-conference softball action on Tuesday night at Lee Softball Stadium.
The loss dropped the Paladins to 25-21 while the Lady Vols upped their record to 37-8.
Annie Aldrete reached on an error to open the bottom of the sixth for Tennessee and scored after Melissa Davin drew a base on balls and Haley Tobler lined an RBI double to left-center. Cheyanne Tarango singled to center field to up the Lady Vols lead to 4-0 and Lexi Overstreet worked a walk to load the bases with nobody out. After Furman’s Lauren Collier fanned Ellen Renfroe, leadoff hitter Shaliyah Geathers doubled to drive in two more runs.
Junior Shelby Parker came on in relief of Collier and retired Megan Geer, but national player of the year candidate Madison Shipman triggered the eight-run mercy rule by blooping a two-run double to right field to end the game.
Collier, who allowed five earned runs on six hits in five and 1/3 innings or work, took the loss for Furman to fall to 14-10 in the circle. She walked five Lady Vols and recorded three strikeouts in the loss.
Tarango (4-1) picked up the win in relief of starter Erin Gabriel by limiting the Paladins to just one hit in two innings of work. Renfroe retired all three batters she faced in the sixth inning and earned a save after entering the game with Tennessee leading 2-0.
Furman’s Sieara Bishop singled with two outs in the first inning and Elise Smith followed with a double over the centerfielder’s head, but the Paladins failed to cash in on the opportunity.
Overstreet’s two-out double off of the left field wall in the bottom of the second gave the Lady Vols a 1-0 lead and Davin doubled the margin with a sacrifice fly to left that plated Geathers in the bottom of the third inning.
Tennessee pitching held the Paladins to just one hit, a Bishop double, the rest of the way to improve to 9-0 all-time against Furman. Bishop went 2-for-3 to pace the Paladins at the plate. Geathers finished 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI and two runs score for Tennessee while Shipman also recorded two hits to drive in two runs.