Chatanooga 4, George Washington 2
Chattanooga 5, Evansville 3
AUBURN, Ala. – Softball head coach Frank Reed secures his 500th win at Chattanooga as the Mocs defeated George Washington, 4-2 and Evansville, 5-3 in the opening day of the Plainsman Invitational. Reed holds an overall career record of 976-386 and an UTC record of 500-299.
Chattanooga got off to a good start in the Plainsman Invitational with 4-2 win over George Washington Friday afternoon.
The first two innings went scoreless as both teams held each other off the bases. However, three consecutive strikeouts pitched by senior Taylor Deason gave some energy to UTC’S pace at the top of the third.
Junior Criket Blanco maintained the momentum by claiming the first hit of the game to bring home Sam Taylor and give the Mocs a 1-0 lead.
The Mocs capped off their lead with three more runs in the sixth inning. Opening the inning was senior Marina Wilkerson who walked to first. Junior Sam Taylor followed in with a hit up the middle.
Junior Alyssa Taylor singled through the right side advancing Sam Taylor and Wilkerson. Sara Beth Roberts wrapped up the play as she doubled to center field allowing Sam Taylor to score.
Senior Nicole Osterman trailed with a hit up the middle bringing in Alyssa Taylor home, forcing George Washington to switch up their pitchers.
Deason came away with the win after pitching no hits in the final inning.
Despite a slow start, the Mocs kept their performance steady to notch a second win against Evansville, 5-3.
The Aces jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead including a big two run double by Mariah Ferguson at the top of the second.
Relentless, Sarah Beth Roberts made her presence known with her first homerun of the season. The Mocs would successfully finish four more runs in the next two innings.
Defensively, Kailey Palazzolo was the only pitcher for the matchup, striking out 10 Evansville’s batters and allowing only three runs on four hits.
Mercer 11, IPFW 1
Mercer 12, Valparaiso 4
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer University softball team opened its 2015 season with a pair of convincing victories at Sikes Field on the first day of the Mercer Invitational Tournament. The Bears rolled past IPFW, 11-1, in its first game of the night, before claiming a 12-4 triumph in the nightcap.
Mercer's offense was on display throughout Friday, as it pounded out 27 hits en route to 23 runs in its two games. Taylor Rodgers led the team with four hits on the day, as she was one of seven Bears with multiple hits. Natalie Shriver and Kaylynn Sloat both had big days at the plate as the two led the Bears with four RBI apiece.
Mercer's offensive outburst overshadowed an impressive effort by the team's starting pitchers, who surrendered just one run on four hits through the first nine innings. O'Neill gave up one run in five innings of work in the opener for her first win of the season, while Stevens tossed four scoreless frames to open up game two, allowing only one run after returning to close the contest.
After two scoreless innings against IPFW to open up the day, the Bears broke through with a big third inning. Kaylynn Sloat's grand slam highlighted a five-run inning for Mercer, who outhit the Mastodons 12-2 in the contest.
IPFW got back one run in the top of the fourth, but the Bears answered with Natalie Shiver's two-run single through the right side. Meghan Rud added a RBI single in the fifth, before Caroline Taylor put the finishing touches on the contest with her three-run blast that ended the game via the run rule.
Mercer dominated its second game of the day from the start, jumping out to a 3-0 advantage in the second on a throwing error followed by a two RBI single from Taylor Rodgers. The bats stayed hot, as the Bears added five runs in the third led by Shriver's solo homerun.
Mercer scored three runs in the fourth off the bats of Jastine Alaan and Riley Carter to hold a 11-0 lead heading into the fifth. Valparaiso answered in the fifth inning with four runs, but the comeback was halted in the bottom of the sixth when Carter scored on a suicide bunt from Alaan ending the game via the run rule.
Action continues tomorrow in day two of the Mercer Invitational. !PFW will take on Valparaiso in the first game of the day beginning at 10:00 a.m. fallowed by Mercer vs. Jacksonville St. at 12:15 p.m.
Samford 5, Miami (OH) 0
Samford 15, Central Michigan 7
ROSEMONT, Ill. - The Samford University softball team took to the field for the first time of the 2015 season and churned out two exciting performances. The Bulldogs took down Miami University of Ohio 5-0 in the opening contest and then downed Central Michigan University 15-7 in a six inning thriller.
Junior Megan Dowdy stood out in her leadoff position from the plate going 6 of 8 with a pair of RBI, a run scored and a walk to highlight Samford's explosive offensive performances.
The Bulldogs opened the season in grand fashion as the team posted five runs on nine hits to take the season opener against the RedHawks 5-0. Redshirt junior Mollie Hanson (1-0) and sophomore Grey Adams combined to toss a three-hit shutout from the circle.
Junior Megan Dowdy set the tone early with a base hit to third for the first hit of the 2015 season but the Samford offense fizzled in the inning to leave one runner stranded.
The bats came around in the third inning with a leadoff single from sophomore Abbie Miranda which was followed by another single from Dowdy. Freshman Shelby Maze drew a full-count walk to load the bases for Caroline Wilder.
Junior Caitlin Bice drove in the first run of the game on a single to center field with one out on the board. Samford scored two more runs to take a 3-0 lead when freshman Karsin Spinks reached on an error by the 'Hawks second baseman which allowed both Bice and Maze to cross home plate.
The Bulldogs added one run each in the top of the fourth and sixth innings to gain the final 5-0 decision. Junior Callie Brister nailed a home run over the left field wall in the fourth while pinch hitter Abby Sweeney pushed across sophomore Abbie Miranda on a four-pitch walk in the sixth.
The Samford offense kicked into high gear early in the second game of the evening as the team posted six quick runs in the first two innings of play to take a 6-0 lead over Central Michigan.
Senior Abby Adams and native of nearby Hobart, Indiana showed up at the plate in a big way with a laser double to deep left center to plate three RBIs.
The Bulldogs chased Rachael Knapp from the circle before the conclusion of the second inning and was replaced by Hanna Warren. Warren entered the game and put the brakes on the rolling Samford offense for three innings.
During that stretch the Chippewas gained momentum offensively and scored its first run of the game in the third on a Samford miscue in the field.
CMU continued its counter attack in the fourth and fifth innings to eventually take the lead 7-6.
The Samford defense rallied around sophomore pitcher Grey Adams (1-0) who stepped in for her second relief appearance of the night. Adams worked one and two thirds innings only to give up a walk to CMU over that span.
In the bottom of the sixth Samford hit its' stride offensively. Junior Caroline Wilder led off the inning with a walk to help set the stage for a pair of singles from junior Caitlin Bice and senior Abby Adams that loaded the bases.
Spinks tied the game at 7-7 with a well-placed hit through the right side and from there the team took control to reel off eight more runs on six hits.
Abby Adams racked up a four RBI performance to pace the team while going 3 of 4 from the plate with a run scored.
Samford tallied 16 hits and five walks with only one strikeout against the team.
The Bulldogs return to action tomorrow, Feb. 7, at 11:30 a.m. against Syracuse University before they take on Loyola (Chicago) at 2 p.m.
Army 9, UNCG 7
UNCG 14, Bethune-Cookman 11
CHARLESTON, S.C. – The UNCG softball team earned a split to open the 2015 season Friday, falling to Army 9-7 before rebounding to top Bethune-Cookman by a 14-11 margin at the Charleston Challenge. The Spartans will be back in action tomorrow with another pair of contests, facing UMass-Lowell at 3:30 p.m. before battling the host College of Charleston at 6 p.m.
Faced with an 8-0 deficit after three innings, the Spartans scored seven of the last eight runs in the game but came up just a little short to Army in the season opener for both teams. The game featured a combined 16 runs and 23 hits while UNCG was charged with two errors.
Sophomore outfielder Kendall McKinney had a nice day at the dish, going 3-for-4 with two RBI. Junior infielder Danielle Vega and sophomore infielder Tory Wright also recorded two hits apiece. Junior catcher Lindsay Thomas had just one hit in the contest but it accounted for three RBI.
Junior RHP Nicole Thomas (0-1) was saddled with the loss, allowing five runs (four earned) on five hits and two walks. She did not record a strikeout. Freshman RHP Mackenzie Winslow made her collegiate debut and gave up four runs (three earned) on seven hits while striking out one.
Senior infielder Dominique Madruga was hit by a pitch to lead off the top of the first before a single up the middle by Nicole Thomas put runners at the corners with one out. Wright worked a two-out walk to load the bases, but freshman Marissa Sholtes struck out swinging to end the Spartan threat. Kasey McCravey led off the bottom of the first for Army with an infield single and reached second on a groundout before stealing third with one out. N. Thomas wriggled out of trouble, however, inducing a groundout and a pop up to keep the Black Knights scoreless.
Army struck for a big inning in the second, scoring five runs on four hits and a UNCG error. The Black Knights were able to extend the advantage to 8-0 in the bottom of the third as Xiomara Perez led off with a double and Kristen McPeek brought her home with a RBI single to right field. McCravey added a two-run double to account for the other two scores.
The Blue and Gold battled back in a big way in the top of the fourth, plating four runs on three hits. Wright led off with a double before senior outfielder Tatiana Alcala walked to load the bases. That brought up McKinney who had a nice hit through the left side to plate pinch runner Emily Lopez for the Spartans’ first run. With two away, Madruga was hit by another pitch, bringing up L. Thomas. She would deliver, lacing a three-run triple just over the out-stretched glove of the right fielder to make it an 8-4 ballgame.
After Army scored an unearned run in the bottom of the fifth, UNCG rallied at the plate once more. With one out and the bases loaded, Alcala produced a RBI groundout to draw the Spartans within 9-5. Freshman outfielder Sidney Grkman then stepped up to the plate and poked a single up the middle that scored two runs – pushing the score to 9-7.
Junior RHP Danica Bishop came in for the final two innings and held the Black Knights off the board, but UNCG could not muster any more runs and fell just short.
In a contest that saw several lead changes and tie scores, it was the Blue and Gold striking for five runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to record its first victory of the season.
Nicole Thomas and Vega each notched three hits while McKinney completed a strong afternoon by tallying four RBI. Thomas and Madruga also scored three runs apiece. Thomas (1-1) was deemed the winner in the circle, throwing the final 2.1 innings and allowing two runs on three hits.
UNCG jumped on top in the bottom of the first, scoring two runs off a RBI single by Vega and a sacrifice fly by McKinney. Bethune-Cookman responded, however, plating five runs on five hits, two passed balls and a wild pitch. Nereyda Gutierrez provided the big blow, a three-run double with the bases loaded.
UNCG had an answer of its own in the bottom of the frame, and it was a big one. Freshman infielder Gabrielle Cubbage reached on an error to lead things off before Madruga singled up the middle. After a Lindsay Thomas lineout, seven-straight Spartans stepped to the plate and drove in runs to propel the Blue and Gold in front by a 9-5 margin. The scoring run consisted of three singles, three bases-loaded walks and a RBI groundout.
The Wildcats rallied again in the top of the fifth inning, tying the score at nine thanks to three RBI singles and a RBI double. After a scoreless bottom of the frame for UNCG, Bethune-Cookman took the lead back with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth. The inning began innocently enough with a groundout, but a wild pitch and another groundout allowed the Wildcats to push ahead 11-9.
Alcala and Grkman singled to lead off the bottom of the sixth and they moved up a base on a sac bunt by Cubbage. Madruga then drew a walk before the Thomas twins delivered back-to-back RBI singles to tie the score at 11. Vega then reached on an error, allowing Madruga to cross home for the winning run. McKinney would add a two-run single to account for the final margin.
BCU put runners at first and second with two outs, but Thomas slammed the door shut and induced a foul out to end the contest.