Chattanooga 5, ETSU 2
Chattanooga 5, ETSU 4
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The Chattanooga Mocs softball team (23-8, 6-0 SoCon) won its sixth-straight SoCon game after outlasting ETSU in consecutive wins (game 1: 5-2/game 2: 5-4) at Betty Basler Field on Sunday afternoon.
Chattanooga jumped ahead of the Bucs in the first inning with a quick one-run frame. Designated hitter Jenny Garcia launched her first home run of the season over the wall in leftfield, putting the Mocs up, 1-0.
UTC put another run on the board in the third inning as Osterman blasted her team-leading 10th home run of the season. The senior’s homer over the left-center wall was a two-hit run as it also drove in Sam Taylor who had reached on a single up the middle.
ETSU threatened with a run in the bottom of the fourth inning as Buc Mykeah Johnson drove in off of a throw to cut UTC’s lead to 3-1.
Relentless, Chattanooga responded with two-run long ball from Jesslyn Stockard over the left field wall, extending the Mocs’ lead to 5-1.
After lighting up the scoreboard with five runs and six hits, UTC’s offense chased ETSU’s starting pitcher Whitney Leon out of the circle. The Bucs would bring in Rebecca Wahrmund to relieve Leon. The mound switch up wouldn’t affect the Mocs as Wahrmund tossed the remaining two innings without any stike outs.
ETSU tacked on one more run in the bottom of the sixth as Kelsey Smith doubled to center field, driving in teammate Brooke Baxter from first. However, the Bucs’ offensive spurt was short lived as the Mocs suppressed ETSU for the remainder of the game, claiming the win, 5-2.
While the Mocs gave the Buc hurlers trouble, Chattanooga freshman lefty Cori Jennings outlasted a few threats from ETSU’s offense to throw another victorious complete game pitcher. Jennings stuck out three batters to register her 10th win in the circle this season.
The second game of the day saw the Mocs claim a tight 5-4 pitching duel over the Bucs Sunday afternoon. Both Taylor Deason and Kailey Palazzolo were called on to deal in the final game against ETSU starter Madison Ogle.
ETSU struck first with two runs in the bottom of the second inning as a single to right field from Emilie Hensley drove in Bucs from second and third.
The Mocs battled back with solid defense, restraining the Bucs to a scoreless third inning. However, Kelsey Smith knocked out a homer to left field on her third pitch to extend ETSU’s advantage to 3-0.
Still in the game, Chattanooga rallied for two runs in the top of the fifth inning. Sam Taylor led off the frame with a double to left center and was run in by fellow outfielder Nicole Osterman, who doubled to right center. Sprinting around the diamond, Osterman found home plate off a throw to set the Mocs only one behind ETSU at 3-2.
The Bucs looked to cushion their lead with single run in the bottom of the fifth, but were matched with two Chattanooga runs added at the top of the sixth. Senior Marina Wilkerson scored off a throwing error by ETSU third baseman Kelsey Smith while a double from Jenny Garcia brought in Sam Taylor.
Getting down to the wire, with the game tied 4-4 after six innings, Chattanooga carefully used its final three outs to secure one run. Amanda Ross put the Mocs in scoring position with a double to left field and Alyssa Taylor answered with a sacrifice fly to bring in pinch runner Courtney Ervin from third.
Holding the lead for the first time, UTC picked off ETSU’s last three batters in order to steal the series finale, 5-4.
The Mocs are back in action Tuesday night as they take on Tennessee Tech for a single game set to being at 6 p.m. ET at Frost Stadium.
Samford 11, UNCG 3
GREENSBORO, N.C. - The Samford University softball team earned its first SoCon series road sweep since 2010 with an 11-3 victory over UNCG on Sunday, March 29, at the UNCG Softball Field.
Samford (23-13, 5-1 SoCon) has won six out of the last seven contests against UNCG (13-15, 0-6 SoCon) and completed its first ever sweep over the Spartans with the win. Redshirt junior Mollie Hanson (14-6) received the call yet again to start in the circle for the Bulldogs and her exceptional performance allowed her to pick up her third complete-game victory in just two days.
The Bulldogs jumped out in front of the Spartans early 2-0 when junior Callie Brister blistered the first pitch she saw over the wall in left field off of starting pitcher Mackenzie Winslow. Winslow was replaced by Alicia Bazonski after SU loaded the bases with two outs via a pair of singles and a walk.
The Spartans bounced back in the bottom of the first to plate a pair of runs and tie the game at 2-2. Nicole Thomas plated the first on an RBI single up while Hagan Kiser plated the second on a bases loaded groundout to Abbie Miranda at second.
UNCG took its first lead of the weekend 3-2 in the bottom of the third when Allison Geiner sent a shot into center field for an RBI single.
However, Samford only trailed UNCG for a short time as the team exploded for six runs in the top of the fifth. The biggest momentum swing of the game came when senior Abby Adams crushed a towering grand slam to left field after working a 1-2 count with no outs.
Sophomore Abby Sweeney started the rally in the fifth with a leadoff triple that nearly made it out of the park in right field. Hot hitting junior Caroline Wilder scored pinch runner Caroline Seay on an RBI single for the first run of the inning. Wilder finished the series 8 for 11 (.776) at the plate and notched a 4 for 5 performance on the day.
Megan Dowdy capped off the scoring in the fifth after she scored from third on a wild pitch from Danica Bishop.
The Bulldogs offense continued to work in the sixth and the seventh innings to plate three more runs. Abbie Miranda's lone hit of the game resulted in an RBI single to right center field that scored Wilder in the sixth while Brister tacked on two more runs for Samford with her second home run of the day.
Brister finished the day 3 for 5 at the plate that included a pair of home runs with four RBI and three runs scored.
SU plated 11 runs on 14 hits while UNCG tallied just three runs on nine hits; each team had a pair of errors in the contest.
The Bulldogs return to action for a solo mid-week contest against Alabama State University on Tuesday, March 31, in Montgomery, Alabama; first-pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m.
Mercer 3, Western Carolina 1
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer University softball team moved to 2-1 in Southern Conference play after defeating Western Carolina 3-1 on Sunday. With the win the Bears move to 26-14 on the season, given them the SoCon's second best record.
Similarly to game one on Saturday, Mercer's Kirsten Stevens and Western Carolina's Jordan Garrett were locked in a pitching duel for the majority of the game. Stevens would allow eight hits through seven innings, recording one run with seven strikeouts and no base-on-balls en route to her seventeenth win of the season.
The Bears and Catamounts would stay scoreless through the first four innings until Western Carolina would break the ice in the top of the fifth, scoring on a RBI double to right center giving them a 1-0 lead heading into the sixth.
Mercer's bats came to life in the sixth as the Catamounts made a pitching change to start the inning. The Bears would score three runs on four hits, with help from three Catamount errors to take the 3-1 lead.
Taylor Rogers would pick up the first RBI for the Bears with a slap hit through the middle to score Natalie Shiver. Caroline Taylor would also score on the play aided by a fielding error. Quirisa Mauga would set up the final score of the game with a single, advancing Rogers to third. Kaytlin Haney would drive Rogers in with a single through the right side to give the Bears the 3-1 advantage.
Stevens would close out her seventeenth complete game of the 2015 campaign, retiring the Catamount side in order to pick up the win. Mercer would finish the game with three runs on seven hits and one error.
Mercer will continue SoCon play next weekend, as the Bears travel to Greenville, South Carolina to take on the Furman Paladins. Mercer will play two games on Friday, beginning at 1:00 p.m. EST. and one game on Saturday. That game will also begin at 1:00 p.m. EST.
Marshall 2, Furman 1
GREENVILLE, S.C. - Marshall right-hander Jordan Dixon continued her weekend dominance by holding Furman to just a run on two hits as the Herd completed the three-game series sweep with a 2-1 victory in the series finale on Sunday at Pepsi Stadium.
Dixon, who allowed just one run on a combined six hits in two complete-game victories on Saturday, fanned seven Paladins and issued just one walk on Sunday to improve to 20-10 in the circle.
Marshall (21-10) grabbed the early lead in the top of the third inning as Kaelynn Greene, who went 2-for-3 on the day with two runs, opened the frame with a bunt single and scored when Elicia D'Orazio followed with a triple into the right-center field gap. Furman erased D'Orazio later in the frame on a double steal attempt to keep the score at 1-0, but the Herd doubled its lead in the fifth. Greene singled to start the inning and scored on Shaelynn Braxton's bases loaded grounder to shortstop after D'Orazio and Emileigh Cooper reached on singles.
Furman (15-16) trimmed the deficit to 2-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning. Taylor Jenkins was plunked with a one-out pitch and scored from first base on Ambree Muller's line drive double into the left-center field gap with two outs.
Dixon retired Courtney Jacobs to strand Muller at second base and begin a run of seven straight batters retired to end the game.
Freshman Lindsey Bert (11-8) took the loss for Furman. The left-hander allowed two runs on nine hits in seven innings. She fanned five batters.
Greene, D'Orazio and Morgan Zerkle each collected two hits apiece to lead Marshall's nine-hit attack.
Furman returns to action on Wednesday when it travels to face Georgia State in a 3 p.m. doubleheader.