1,500th Win, Trahan's Shutout Headline UL Lafayette's Saturday
GULF SHORES, Ala. – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns softball team's second day of competition at the Sand Dollar Classic at the Gulf Shores Sportsplex was highlighted by both a program and individual milestone.
No. 11 UL Lafayette opened Saturday's action with an 8-0 (5 inn.) win over Southeast Missouri which marked the program's 1,500th all-time victory. In the nightcap, sophomore pitcher Kylee Jo Trahan hurled the first seven-inning shutout of her collegiate career as the Ragin' Cajuns blanked Samford 1-0.
UL-L took advantage of the opportunities SEMO handed them, scoring three of its eight runs off on an error, wild pitch and passed ball. The top three in the lineup - Haley Hayden (3-for-3), Shellie Landry (3-for-4), Lexie Elkins (1-for-2) - went a combined 7-for-9 at the plate with three of the four RBI. Elkins broke open a 1-0 contest in the second inning with a two-out, two-run single up the middle.
Alex Stewart struck out seven in three innings of work in the circle and Macey Smith pitched two shutout innings as the duo combined for a one-hit shutout of the Redhawks.
Trahan held Samford to one hit while striking out eight and Hayden broke a scoreless tie in the fifth inning when she singled home Kassidy Zeringue who had moved into scoring position after reaching base on a two-out error.
The shutouts extended the Ragin' Cajuns' pitching staff's string of consecutive scoreless innings pitched to 18. The staff limited SEMO and Samford to a combined two base hits over 12 innings of work on Saturday.
The wins moved Louisiana to 4-0 on the young season and in the Sand Dollar Classic. The team completes tournament play in Gulf Shores on Sunday at 12 p.m., against Louisiana Tech live on SportsRadio ESPN 1420-AM (pre-game show at 11:45 a.m.).
UL-L vs. Southeast Missouri
After her first two at bats, Elkins provided the Cajuns a 3-0 lead. She sent a first-inning grounder to shortstop that was misplayed allowing Hayden to score and in the second inning her two-out single scored Hayden and Landry who singled in front of her.
Stewart set the tone early in the pitching circle, striking out five of the first eight SEMO batters she faced.
Aleah Craighton doubled down the left field line to open the Cajuns half of the third inning and scored on a bloop single down the right field line by Sara Corbello. Louisiana would load the bases and add three more runs for a 7-0 lead, with one run apiece off a double play in a pinch hit at bat by Corin Voinche, a passed ball and a wild pitch during a walk of Elkins.
Smith relieved Stewart in the fourth inning and kept the clamps on the Redhawks' offense, retiring six of the seven batters that she faced.
Zeringue reached on a bunt single to open the bottom of the fifth, stole second and scored the game-ending run (eight-run rule) on a single up the middle by Landry.
The Cajuns and Redhawks met for the first time since matchups at the Frost Cutlery Classic in Chattanooga, Tenn., in April 1994 and 1995.
UL-L vs. Samford
Trahan and Samford's Mollie Hanson entertained the crowd with an old-fashioned pitcher's duel that was scoreless through the first four innings.
Both pitchers escaped scoring threats in the second inning. Hanson worked around a two on, no one out situation after Kelsey Vincent led off with a single and Craighton walked. Trahan posted back-to-back strikeouts after the Bulldogs moved a runner to second base with a sacrifice bunt.
Only one batter reached base over the next two innings, with Landry reaching on an infield single to second base.
Hanson, who retired Louisiana in order in the fourth inning, appeared headed for a second consecutive 1-2-3 frame in the fifth inning before Zeringue's speed paid off on a bunt single. Hanson's throw to first base was rushed and sailed out of the reach of Caitlin Bice at first base allowing Zeringue to reach base and advance to second base.
Hanson's error proved costly as Hayden rifled the first offering on the next bat into left field to score Zeringue with what proved to be the game-winning tally.
Trahan's final test came in the bottom half of the fifth. Miranda lifted a high fly ball to center field that carried to the outfield fence, but was caught by Craighton. Then after a hit by pitch placed a Bulldogs runner at second base, she forced Dowdy to ground out to second base for the final out.
Hanson retired six of the final seven Cajuns she faced to keep Samford's deficit at one run. Trahan matched her, retiring five straight before forcing Higgins to foul out after a two-out walk in the seventh inning.
Saturday's meeting was the 11th all-time between the Cajuns and Bulldogs and first since the 2001 Janette Spell Memorial at Lamson Park. Louisiana remained perfect in the all-time series (11-0) with the win.
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Georgia Southern Drops Two Games In Starkville
STARKVILLE, Miss. – The Georgia Southern softball team wrapped up play at the Bulldog Kickoff Classic Saturday, dropping a pair of games to Tennessee Tech (4-0) and Houston (10-2).
GAME 1 – TTU 4, GS 0
Tennessee Tech (2-1) scored all four runs via Georgia Southern errors, scoring an unearned run in the first inning, two more unearned runs in the second inning and a last unearned run in the sixth inning. GS had a pair of big chances, but couldn't cash in either time. In the first inning, GS loaded up the bases, but a pair of strikeouts ended the rally. The Eagles again loaded the bases up in the fifth inning, but a strikeout and a fly out quashed that threat. GS left 10 runners on base for the game.
Kierra Camp (L, 1-2) went the distance, allowing four unearned runs as the Eagles committed five errors. She gave up five hits and a walk while striking out three.
At the plate, Witkowski led the way with a pair of hits while Emily Snider, Hannah Farrell and Davis each had one hit. The Eagles drew five walks, two from Macy Weeks and one apiece from Taylor Rogers, Snider and Emily Robinson.
GAME 2 – UH 10, GS 2 (5 Inn.)
Georgia Southern scored the first run of the game in the second inning when Alesha Mann blooped a single to right field to plate Hamilton from second base. The Cougars (2-1) loaded the bases up in the third inning and plated two runs on a double and then three more on a pair of singles and a sacrifice fly.
Houston scored another run in the top of the fourth inning to stretch the lead to 6-1. In the fourth inning, Hamilton led off with an inside-the-park home run to energize the dugout. The senior sliced the ball to right field and Julana Shrum dove for the ball. It squirted past her and rolled to the fence and Hamilton raced home ahead of the throw.
The Cougars put the game away with four more runs in the top of the fifth inning to help end the game early due to the run-ahead rule.
At the plate, Davis led the way with a pair of hits while Hamilton, Snider and Mann each had one.
Dixie Raley (L, 0-2) went four-plus innings, picking up three strikeouts. Camp finished the game, picking up the final three outs.
The Eagles will return to action next weekend, participating in the Madeira Beach Spring Invitational, hosted by Eastern Michigan. The event will take place at the in Madeira Beach, Florida, and the Eagles are scheduled to play Villanova, UMass-Lowell, North Florida, Providence and Marist.
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Texas State Splits On Day Two Of CenturyLink Classic
SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State softball team picked up a split Saturday afternoon at the CenturyLink Classic with a 4-3 victory over DePaul and a 1-0 defeat against Northwestern State. The Bobcats move to 3-1 on the young season.
Game 1 – DePaul
The Blue Demons got on the board quick against Texas State with a solo shot to dead center in the top of the first inning. It took Texas State three innings, but Kimberlin Naivar evened up the game at 1-1 with her first home run of the 2016 season. Naivar's home run was the first Texas State hit of the day.
DePaul quickly answered Naivar's home run with another solo shot of its own to take a 2-1 advantage over the Bobcats.
The Blue Demons went on to add one more in the top of the fifth. DePaul, with two outs, reached base on a Bobcat error and quickly capitalized on the next at bat with a double down the left field line. The run scored, due to reaching base on an error, was unearned for Paige Williams.
With two outs and runners on first and second in the bottom of the fifth, sophomore shortstop Ariel Ortiz connected on her first home run of the season that bounced off the top of the wall to give Texas State a 4-3 lead. The Bobcats loaded the bases before the inning was over, but a strikeout by the DePaul pitcher ended Texas State's chances of adding more in the fifth.
Williams earned her first win as a Bobcat in 5.1 innings pitched. She finished the day with one strikeout while not allowing any walks. Randi Rupp came in relief for Williams in the sixth inning and struck out one en route to her first save of the year.
Game 2 – Northwestern State
A pair of doubles in the first inning by Northwestern State would result in the only run scored in the entirety of the contest.
In the top of the third, freshman Kayleigh Norte broke up Northwestern State's no-hitter with a double down the left field line. Kelli Baker advanced Norte over to third on a sacrifice bunt for the first out of the inning. The Bobcats had a chance to score on the next at bat with a ball hit to the outfield by Bianca Prado, but heads up defense by the Northwestern State outfield kept Norte from advancing home.
With two outs and Kendall Wiley on first after a walk, Corrina Liscano doubled to left center for the second Bobcat hit of the day. That would be the extent of the Bobcat offense for the rest of the game as Northwestern State held on for its first victory over Texas State since 2011.
Randi Rupp was handed her first loss of the 2016 season after putting in 6.0 innings of work with nine strikeouts and no walks.
Who Stood Out:
Paige Williams earned her first win as a Bobcat in 5.1 innings pitched against DePaul while Randi Rupp earned her first save … Rupp finished the day with 10 strikeouts after throwing nine against Northwestern State … Kayleigh Norte was the lone Bobcat to record a hit in each game.
Up Next:
Texas State will take to the field two more times in the CenturyLink Classic, beginning with Oklahoma State at 12 p.m. and finishing with Abilene Christian at 2 p.m. Sunday.
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ULM Softball Splits Day Two of Mardi Gras Classic
MONROE, La. – The ULM softball team split a pair of games Saturday in the second day of the Mardi Gras Classic at ULM Softball Complex, defeating Grambling State 5-0 before falling to Stephen F. Austin 7-4.
ULM 5, Grambling State 0
Freshman Katlynn Kaminski notched a complete game shutout in her first career start, blanking the Grambling State Lady Tigers in a 5-0 Warhawk win. Kaminski only allowed two hits and struck out six.
Junior Rochelle Roberts commenced the scoring in the first, scoring on a balk after being walked to start the inning. Later in the inning, senior Faith Bohack and junior Vanessa Garcia hit back-to-back home runs to left field which lifted ULM to an early 3-0 advantage.
No more runs were scored until the bottom of the fifth when Garcia scored freshman Sydney McKay on an RBI groundout and sophomore McKinley Marks plated Bohack on a RBI double to right field. Kaminski then cruised ULM to victory.
Roberts and McKay were active on the base paths, stealing three and two bases respectively.
SFA 7, ULM 4
Garcia drove in two runs on a double, sparking a three-run fifth that reduced the Ladyjack lead to 5-4 before Stephen F. Austin pulled away in a 7-4 defeat.
The Ladyjacks chased sophomore Paige Porter out of the game in the third when designated player Brittany Lewis smacked a two-RBI triple to right field. First baseman Faith Talley singled through the left side to bring in another run after Kaminski came in to relieve Porter as SFA jumped out to a 3-0 lead.
The Warhawks answered in the bottom half on a Faith Bohack RBI single to right field, scoring McKay who stole second after reaching on a fielder’s choice.
After SFA scored two in the top of the fourth, ULM responded with three runs in the bottom of the fifth when Garcia brought home Bohack and Roberts on the aforementioned double. Senior Amye Barre then scored Garcia on a single to left field which cut into the Ladyjack lead at 5-4.
SFA continued to apply pressure by scoring two insurance runs in the top of the sixth, one on a fielder’s choice and the other on a Taylor Fraccastoro walk with the bases loaded.
Sophomore Cheyanne Lyon opened up the bottom of the sixth with a double to left center, but the Warhawks were unable to bring her home. Barre singled down the left-field line with two outs in the seventh before Marks struck out looking on a full count to end the game.
Marks finished the day 4-6 with a double and a RBI while Garcia tallied a team-high four RBIs.
ULM concludes its weekend tomorrow morning at 9 when it faces Seton Hall in the finale of the Mardi Gras Classic. The 11 a.m. game between Prairie View A&M and SFA has been cancelled.
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Troy Softball Completes Sweep in Second Day of the Trojan Invite
TROY, Alabama – Senior Amanda Winters and junior Becca Hartley had a combined 10 RBIs and three home runs on the day as Troy defeated Evansville in walk-off fashion, 5-4, and Eastern Michigan 13-2 on Saturday at the Troy Softball Complex.
Freshman Amber Jones' first collegiate hit was a walk-off single that lifted the Trojans (3-0) over the Purple Aces (3-1) in the bottom of the seventh inning in the first game. Winters drove in five runs on two hits against Eastern Michigan (0-3) to cap off the night.
TROY 5, EVANSVILLE 4
Troy was trailing, 4-3, in the bottom of the seventh inning when Hartley homered over the left field wall and tied the game at four. Winters came up to the plate with two outs and doubled to left field and advanced to third on a wild pitch which set Jones up for the walk-off single.
Troy was held hitless until the fourth inning when Carli Kayler tripled to center field. Kate Benton came up next and contributed with a single to shortstop and Hartley drove them home with a three run bomb over the left field wall and gave the Trojans a 3-2 lead.
Evansville got on the board in the second inning with an single to right center and extended their lead to 2-0 in the third with an RBI double to center field.
Hartley went 2-for-4 and drove in four of the five RBIs, while four different Trojans had at least one hit in the game.
Senior Ashley Rainey (1-0) earned the victory, pitching two innings, recording three strikeouts and no walks facing nine batters.
Emily Lockhart (1-1) suffered the loss for the Purple Aces, giving up one run on two hits facing four batters.
TROY 13, EASTERN MICHIGAN 2
Troy put up seven runs in the first inning against Eastern Michigan, after scoring eight runs against them in the first inning on opening night. Hartley got the hits started with a single to left field. Next up, Winters drew a walk and Hartley advanced to third on a throwing error which put runners at second and third. Hannah Day blasted a ball to center field that cleared the bases and gave the Trojans an early 3-0 lead.
After Erica Davis reached on a single, two players were hit by pitches, putting runners on second and third. The Trojans scored three straight runs on a Kayler single, a Kate Benton walk and the last on an Eastern Michigan error that gave the Trojans a 6-0 lead. One more run would cross in the inning on wild pitch.
The Trojans plated three runs in the third inning on a Winters double to center field and added another three runs in the fourth inning on a Hartley single and a Winters home run.
Eastern Michigan's two runs came in the fourth inning on a single and a fielder's choice.
Winters went 2-for-2 in the game with a home run, a double and five RBIs, while Hartley went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Rainey (2-0) recorded her second win of the season pitching four innings and only gave up two runs on four hits and faced 21 batters.
The Trojans return to the field Sunday in another doubleheader as they host Marshall at 2:30 p.m. and Alabama State at 5 p.m.
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Mavs remain perfect in UTA Invitational
ARLINGTON, Texas – UT Arlington remained perfect on the season as it swept through Day 3 of the UT Arlington Invitational at Allan Saxe Field on Saturday.
The Mavericks (5-0) pounded out 15 hits in the pair of wins as it downed Texas Southern and Missouri State. Kacey Everett and Brianna Burchianti led the way with three hits for the day, while it was the newcomers for a second day in a row earning wins in the circle.
Brittani Barilli has accounted for nine walks this weekend and 103 in her career to pull her one away from tying for second in UTA history.
"The team did a really good job," UT Arlington coach Kristie Fox said. "They swung the bats well. I didn’t like in the first game how we got flat in the middle but they were able to turn it on in the end.
"In the second game they showed a lot of heart and character. It was an interesting game, but these 2-1 kind of close games is what we have to be prepared for when it gets down to conference. It is going to be tight and we have to be able to show the maturity and how to handle those situations. They were put in a situation where they were down, they stayed calm and found a way."
UTA closes out play in the UT Arlington Invitational on Sunday at 10 a.m. against Detroit.
"Our weekend is not over and that is our motto," Fox said. "The weekend is not over and we have one more to handle."
Game 1: UT Arlington 9, Texas Southern 0 (5)
UT Arlington ran its run-rule streak to three consecutive games as it continued from where it left off. After scoring 19 runs in two games in Day 2, the Mavericks put up an eight spot in the opening frame.
Shelbi Sikes opened things up with a bases-loaded walk that brought Sandra Mendoza home. Freshman Brianna Burchianti knocked a two-run double to right in the next at-bat and Kacey Everett kept the rally going with a two-run single.
Mendoza, hitting around in the lineup, pushed Everett across the plate with a two-out single and an error allowed UTA's final two runs of the frame to come home.
UTA's offense went quiet until the fourth. Jolene Schaefer produced a RBI double to score Burchianti.
Junior Brooklynne Simbeck pitched five scoreless innings to earn her second win in as many starts. Simbeck allowed just one hit and walked two.
Game 2: UT Arlington 2, Missouri State 1
The Mavericks found themselves in a defensive battle with the Bears in Game 2 of the day.
Missouri State gave UTA its first deficit of the season with a run in the third that came off a two-out single. It took the Mavs just one inning to respond, plating a run on Mya Anderson's first hit of the season to score Kayci Moore.
UTA took the lead two innings later behind a Mendoza infield single. The Bears' shortstop dove to knock the ball down, but was unable to make an attempt to get a runner.
That was all freshman Samantha Clakley needed to improve to 2-0. Clackley pitched 7.0 innings, giving up an earned run, a walk and five hits. She struck out two in her second consecutive complete game.
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NO. 25 USA COMBINES FOR 20 RUNS IN SATURDAY SHUTOUTS
GULF SHORES, Ala. – No. 25 University of South Alabama softball scored 20 runs on 18 hits, while allowing no runs on only six hits in two shutout wins on Saturday at the 2016 Sand Dollar Classic, hosted by The Fieldhouse, at the Gulf Shores Sportsplex.
The Jaguars defeated Ball State, 8-0, and Central Arkansas, 12-0, in a pair of mercy-rule victories. USA wraps up play this weekend on Sunday with a noon clash versus Southeastern Missouri State.
"Today was a great day," said USA head coach Becky Clark. "Both of those teams are top teams in their conference. It starts in the circle. Our pitchers threw strikes, and we cleaned up some things defensively from last night. Offensively, we had a great approach against both pitchers we faced."
Emily Messer continued her blistering start to the season, finishing the day 4-for-6 with four runs and an RBI. Haleigh Lowe drove in five runs on three hits Saturday, including her second career home run, in addition to drawing a pair of walks. Stephanie Pilkington plated four runs on three hits, including her fifth career homer. Kaleigh Todd and Paige Holmes each recorded three RBI, and Savanna Mayo scored three runs and hit her first collegiate home run.
Devin Brown and Destin Vicknair each picked up their second wins of the season, the former striking out nine versus Ball State against three walks in six innings and the latter fanning six to no walks in five frames.
No. 25 South Alabama 8, Ball State 0 (6 inn.)
The Jaguars (4-0) scored in all but one inning versus the 2015 Mid-American Conference champions, beginning in the second frame on Lowe's leadoff solo blast.
USA scratched a pair across to go ahead, 3-0, in the third inning when Pilkington supplied a two-run homer to straightaway center, scoring Messer, who got on with a bunt single.
South Alabama loaded the bases in the fourth inning to set up Pilkington's infield RBI single, which scored Mayo. Megan Harris then scored on a wild pitch to put USA up, 5-0, before Lowe singled to first base to plate Messer.
Todd drew a bases-loaded walk to score Holmes in the fifth inning, and Tucker Caraway, pinch-running for Lowe in the sixth inning, came around on Holmes's base hit to make it 8-0.
Messer, Pilkington and Lowe each recorded a pair of hits in the contest. Pilkington drove in three runs, while Lowe plated a pair. Messer scored twice.
Ball State (1-3) pitcher Nicole Steinbach took her first loss of the season after giving up seven runs (three earned) on seven hits with five walks and four strikeouts in five innings. Reliever Carolyn Wilmes gave up one run (earned) on a hit with a walk in one frame.
No. 25 South Alabama 12, Central Arkansas 0 (5 inn.)
The entirety of USA's damage against the 2015 Southland Conference champions in the third inning, which took 31 minutes to complete.
Mayo's solo bomb led things off, and Messer came around on Todd's single up the middle to put USA up, 2-0. Kristian Foster's RBI base hit scored Todd, and Holmes's two-run double plated Foster and Lowe for a 4-0 Jaguar lead.
Haleigh Lane, who previously reached on a fielder's choice, scored on the second UCA error of the inning to give USA its fifth unanswered score.
Messer then drew a bases-loaded walk to score Holmes, and Todd delivered another RBI single to bring Mayo around. Pilkington drew a bases-loaded walk of her own to score Harris, who reached on a fielder's choice earlier in the inning to make it 9-0.
Lowe's bases-clearing double provided the Jags their final scores, with Pilkington, Todd and Messer all crossing home.
Vicknair retired six of the final eight batters she faced to seal the victory.
Messer, Todd and Mayo each finished with a pair of hits and runs in the game. Lowe drove in three runs, while Todd and Holmes recorded two apiece. Seven total Jaguars combined for 10 hits in the contest.
Shivaun Landeros (1-1) suffered the loss for UCA after allowing nine runs (three earned) on seven hits with a walk. Nicole Fullilove threw 1 1/3 innings and gave up three runs (none earned) on as many hits with three strikeouts and a walk.
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Furman Beats App State in Heartbreaker, 5-3
AUBURN, Ala. - Appalachian State University softball led Furman 3-1 heading into the bottom of the sixth before the Paladins scored four runs on four hits in that half to go up 5-3 and take the win from the Mountaineers.
Furman (1-2) only scored one run in the first five innings and that came in the bottom of the first, while the Black and Gold fell to 0-4 and have yet to find their stride to begin the season.
The Paladins first-inning run came on an RBI double down the left field line with two outs in the frame. App State was held scoreless in both the first and second innings before scoring one run each in the third, fourth and fifth innings.
In the third, Heather Josey hit Appalachian's first home run of the season and the eighth of her career, a solo shot to right. In the fourth, the Apps scored when Cara Parker doubled in Casey Brescia. Lastly, in the fifth, Pepper Butler crushed her first bomb of the season and 11th of her career off the bottom of the scoreboard in left center to make it 3-1 in favor of Appalachian State.
However, in the bottom of the sixth, Furman used a three-run triple and an RBI double to go back up 5-3 before the Mountaineers went three up, three down in their half of the seventh to close it out.
Katherine Johnson got the start and went 4.1 innings with one earned run given up on three hits, three walks, and two strikeouts. Vanessa Ciocatto (0-2) pitched 1.2 innings with four earned runs surrendered on four hits, one free pass and one punchout before Johnson re-entered in in the sixth.
The Black and Gold will end play in the Plainsman Invite on Sunday with a 2 p.m. ET first pitch against No. 4 Auburn.