Friday, February 13, 2015

No. 24 South Alabama Constructs Another Winning Seventh Inning, Downs Oklahoma State

MOBILE, Ala. – No. 24 University of South Alabama softball broke a four-all tie with Oklahoma State on Friday at the 2015 Mardi Gras Invitational when junior center fielder Stephanie Pilkington drew a bases-loaded walk in the seventh inning to defeat the Cowgirls, 5-4, at Jaguar Field.

The 2015 Preseason All-Sun Belt Conference selection watched ball four pass to bring classmate Emily Messer around for the victory, South Alabama's second in the final inning in a week after sophomore right fielder Amanda Minahan delivered a walk-off double last Sunday against Houston for a 3-2 Jaguar win at the 2015 Sand Dollar Classic in Gulf Shores, Ala.

The Jaguars finished on the winning end of five total lead changes, previously going ahead in the first and third innings, as Oklahoma State used the long ball to its advantage on a cold night on the opening night of the fifth annual Mardi Gras Invitational. OSU's Danielle Riddle and Vanessa Shippy each homered, combining for three RBI on the night.

USA starter Devin Brown gave up all four runs (three earned) on four Cowgirl hits in four innings. Reliever Kalen McGill, making her second career appearance, held OSU to a single hit over the final three innings. The Jaguars put up a run apiece in the sixth and seventh frames to both tie and go ahead.

"That wasn't really a pretty game; we made some mistakes that we shouldn't be making," said USA head coach Becky Clark. "The good news is that we competed all the way through, and we gave ourselves a chance to win in the end. Kalen did a great job coming into a pressure situation and working us out of that to give us a chance in the end.

"We've got two big games tomorrow, so we've got to come out and compete again," she concluded.

The Jaguars moved to 4-2 on the year with Friday's win, while Oklahoma State fell to 1-4. OSU's Whitney Whitehorn, who struck out a pair to five walks and allowed five runs (all earned), took the loss for the Cowgirls, falling to 0-3 on the year.

USA racked up a season-high 14 hits on Friday, powered by Pilkington's 3-for-4 showing. First baseman Amanda Herron was 3-for-3, while Minahan, Messer and senior left fielder Blair Johnson each recorded a pair of hits.

Minahan hit her seventh career homer and USA's first of the year to tie the game on Friday in the seventh inning.

South Alabama took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Johnson delivered a two-out RBI single to plate Minahan, who was hit by a pitch.

The Cowgirls answered with a pair of go-ahead runs in the top of the seventh on Riddle's two-run blast over the left field wall that sent across leadoff Mallory Collins, who walked.

After Pilkington popped out and sophomore Chloe Rathburn grounded out to lead off the bottom of the third, OSU's Whitehorn issued consecutive walks to senior shortstop Kaitlyn Griffith, Johnson and senior catcher Alex Breeden. Herron and Messer each supplied infield singles to plate Griffith and Johnson, which put USA ahead, 3-2.

Shippy evened things at three-all with a one-out bomb in the top of the fourth, and Maddie Holcombe, pinch-running for Darcy Taylor, who drew a walk, scored on Michaela Patton's two-out RBI single to put OSU ahead, 4-3.

McGill earned her first collegiate win on Friday, finishing with four strikeouts to one walk in three innings. Brown struck out nine batters to three walks in four frames.

South Alabama takes on Lipscomb and Butler on Saturday at 11:15 a.m. and 3:45 p.m., respectively. Live stats can be found via links listed on the Jaguar softball schedule page. In-game Twitter updates are provided on the Jaguar's official handle @USAJagsSoftball.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

----

Cajuns Open Mardi Gras Classic With Pair of Wins

LAFAYETTE - Dominant pitching performances by Alex Stewart and Jordan Wallace and an offensive attack that piled up 28 base hits on the day led the No. 7 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns softball team to wins over Idaho State and Mississippi Valley State here Friday at Lamson Park in the Mardi Gras Classic presented by Hilton Lafayette.

Stewart retired 19 of the final 20 Idaho State hitters, while Lexie Elkins and Samantha Walsh homered to drive in all the Cajuns runs in a 5-1 victory in the opener.

Wallace struck out the first seven MVSU hitters and 16 overall while tossing a no-hitter in the nightcap. Louisiana (6-0) piled up 11 runs over the final two innings to pull away for a 15-0 win over the Devilettes.

Elkins broke out offensively, homering three times during the day and posting four RBI.

"I thought our pitching was dominant," head coach Michael Lotief said. "Offensively, it took us a while to get our momentum going, we just kept working at it and working at it. It's a tough game to play and in order to get your momentum and get on a roll you have to have a lot of people doing a lot of good things.

"We just stayed at it and it started to happen," Lotief added. "We need to try to be able to create the momentum earlier and we need to be able to sustain it."

Louisiana continues play in the Mardi Gras Classic on Saturday meeting Mississippi Valley State at 2:30 p.m., and Idaho State at 5 p.m. Live stats and video will be available on RaginCajuns.com. Steve Peloquin will call the action on Sports Radio ESPN 1420-AM.

The Cajuns jumped out to an early lead on Idaho State (2-5). With one out, Shellie Landry and Elkins walked, then Walsh homered for a 3-0 edge.

The Bengals registered the first run off Cajuns pitching in the bottom of the first on a Vicky Galasso solo home run. Stewart settled into a groove, beginning a string of 14 straight batters retired that ran through the sixth inning.

Elkins would homer twice, solo shots in the third and seventh inning to finish off the scoring.

Stewart finished with eight strikeouts over seven innings and held ISU to two hits. After Galasso's home run she would retire 19 of the final 20 batters faced.

"She (Alex) has been consistent," Lotief said. "You can see how hard she's worked to get her body to be in the kind of shape it needs to be in to do this. She developed the secondary pitches that we've asked her to develop, got her velocity up and now she's tougher mentally."

Wallace zipped through the MVSU (1-7) lineup with ease. She struck out the first seven Devilettes that stepped to the plate and closed out the game striking out the final seven en route to a season-high 16 strikeouts. Wallace carried a perfect game into the fifth inning, a one-out throwing error by Walsh in the inning being the lone blemish.

"Jordan had a good fall," Lotief remarked. "I think last year was an aberration as a lot of things snowballed on each other. She just had to let it go. She is now more of what she was her sophomore year than last year."

Kelli Martinez and Hayden delivered RBI singles in the second inning to break a scoreless tie. A DJ Sanders two-run double with two outs in the third inning stretched the lead to 4-0.

Louisiana's offensive showcase was on full display in the seventh inning as they extended a 7-0 lead by sending 13 batters to the plate. Three Cajuns homered - Hayden, Elkins and Aleah Craighton - to highlight an eight-run frame.

Hayden, Meagan Thomas and Sanders each collected three hits leading an 18-hit attack against the Devilettes. Landry added two doubles and two RBI, Elkins launched her third home run of the day and a total of five Cajuns had at least two RBI.

Wallace's no-hitter was the first for the Cajuns since Kristin Martinez and Wallace combined for a no-hitter against College of Charleston on March 2, 2013 in the NFCA Leadoff Classic.

DIAMOND NOTES: Louisiana and Idaho State met for the first time...The Cajuns improved to 10-0 all-time against Mississippi Valley State...With six more home runs, the Cajuns have now hit 15 through the season's first five games...Jordan Wallace's 16 strikeouts matched her season total...Wallace now has 32 strikeouts in 15 innings pitched...Alex Stewart, making her third start, logged her first complete game of the season and finished with a season-high eight strikeouts...Redshirt freshman Aleah Craighton posted her first collegiate triple in the sixth inning of the MVSU contest...Craighton extended her team-best hitting streak to six games...Haley Hayden ended the day 5-for-9 at the plate and is hitting 12-for-21 for the season...Hayden and Craighton each picked up the fourth and fifth multiple-hit games of the season...Jordan Wallace and Alex Stewart combined allowed just one walk over 14 innings pitched...The Cajuns pitching staff has surrendered just six walks and struck out 63 in 36 innings.

----

Georgia State Softball Claws in Two Comeback Wins

What you need to know
* Megan Litumbe hit two homers and Taylor Anderson blasted her first long ball of the year.
* Chelsea Stanfield pitched 10 innings over two games en route to a pair of victories.
* GSU wraps up the weekend against Eastern Illinois Saturday, Feb. 14 at 1 p.m.

AUBURN, Ala. – On Day 2 of the Tiger Invitational, the Georgia State softball team picked up come-from-behind victories over Winthrop and Ball State at Jane B. Moore Field on Friday, Feb. 13 to improve to 2-1 in 2015.

Game 1

Megan Litumbe led the way with two home runs and five RBI while Chelsea Stanfield picked up her first win at GSU in relief. Winthrop jumped in front 3-0 after one and GSU would not get on the board until the top of the fourth when Litumbe launched her first homer of the season to cut the Eagles’ lead to 3-2.

Georgia State then plated four in the top of the fifth to take the lead. Ivie Drake drove in two with a double and Litumbe hit her second bomb of the game to extend the Panthers’ advantage to 6-3. The Eagles responded with four runs of their own in the bottom of the frame to take a 7-6 lead.

In the top of the sixth, Alford tied the game with a sacrifice fly and Litumbe hit a RBI single to give GSU an 8-7 lead it would not relinquish.

Game 2

Taylor Anderson went 4-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored in Game 2 while Stanfield picked up the complete game victory for her second win of the day. The Panthers fell behind 1-0 early but responded with three runs in the bottom of the first.

Anderson, Morgan Brown and Lauren Coleman loaded the bases before Callie Alford singled to score two. Then with the bases loaded for the second time, Litumbe hit a sacrifice fly to plate Coleman and put GSU up 3-1 after one.

Ball State scored one in the second before Anderson launched a two run homer to put the Panthers up by three, 5-2. No one scored in the third and both teams plated one in the fourth. In the bottom of the fifth, Drake singled to score Ashley Christy and Kensey Caldwell doubled to plate Drake.

Georgia State scored two more on a pair of throwing errors in the sixth to put the game out of reach. Ball State scored one in the top of the seventh but it was not enough as GSU secured the 10-4 victory. Stanfield went the distance to improve to 2-1 on the season.?

----

Mavs Complete Day 2 Sweep With Walk-Off Win

ARLINGTON, Texas– UT Arlington sent 27 runs across the plate in two games to sweep Day 2 of the Maverick Invitational at Allan Saxe Field on Friday.

The Mavericks (7-1) earned their fifth consecutive win after defeating Incarnate Word and Buffalo. Nina Villanueva finished the day with four doubles in the two games and had six hits overall.

"I have been really impressed with how the team is swinging the bat," UT Arlington coach Kristie Fox said. "They have been taking really good approaches at the plate. In the first game, when they put a good swing on it the home runs will come and in the second game they were putting the ball in play hard and when you do that good things happen. I just want them to keep that mindset."

UTA has scored 52 runs during its winning streak, including 40 during the Maverick Invitational in three games.

The Mavericks will play just one game on Day 3 of the tournament as they take on Big 10 power Ohio State at 5 p.m.

Game 1: UT Arlington 16, Incarnate Word 2

For the second consecutive game, UT Arlington's offense was able to reach double-digit scoring against Incarnate Word.
The Mavericks followed up a 13-4 win on Thursday night with 16 runs on 19 hits overall. Nina Villanueva led the team with three doubles in the contest after going 4-for-5 at the plate and had four RBI.
UTA jumped out of the gates in the first as Villanueva would provide the first of her RBI. The Mavs opened the game with four consecutive hits in the first to score two runs in the inning. UTA added one in the second before bring home three in the third.

Meagan Michele opened the third with a leadoff homer to left-center field. UTA would string hits together before Sandra Mendoza brought home Rebecca Stokes on a sacrifice fly to center. UTA completed the inning with a double from Britnea Barilli to score Everett.

The Mavs again would score three in the sixth inning to respond to a two-run inning by the Cardinals in the fifth.
The game was put away in the seventh with seven runs crossing the plate on five hits, featured by a homer from Stokes on a three-run shot to complete the team's scoring.

Sam Montes earned the win after pitching six innings. Montes allowed seven hits, but just two earned runs, and struck out four.

Game 2: UT Arlington 11, Buffalo 3

UT Arlington was able to pull away from Buffalo with a seven-run third to break open the game and complete a sweep of Day 2 action in the Maverick Invitational.

Shelbi Sikes finished with a game-high three RBI against the Bulls and was 2-4 from the plate with a run. Nina Villanueva was 2-for-3 with a double, her fourth of the day, and Britnea Barilli and Sandra Mendoza each scored two runs.

UTA picked up a run in the first when Villanueva singled to center with one out. The Mavs had an opportunity to do more damage in the inning, but left two on base as the inning ended with a pop up to short.

Buffalo responded with runs in the second and third innings to take a 2-1 lead to the bottom of the third. UTA answered with a seven-run inning on four hits to build a six-run advantage.

The Bulls helped the Mavs' offense get a jump-start as the team had an error and two illegal pitches in the frame. Villanueva brought home Mendoza on a single to left and then back-to-back free passes helped bring two runs in with the bases loaded. Meagan Michele and Jolene Schaefer each had RBI hits to expand the lead to 8-2.

UTA ended the game in the fifth with three runs to complete the run-rule. Following a run to get the offense started, Sikes hit a walk-off single to score two with the bases loaded.

Kayla Donaldson improved to 4-0 on the season after pitching five innings. The freshman struck out four and allowed three runs (two earned).

----

Warhawks Sweep Day One of Mardi Gras Classic

MONROE, La. – Stellar pitching and offensive spark gives ULM (6-1) two run-rule victories as the Warhawks sweep day one of the Mardi Gras Classic.

Freshman pitcher Paige Porter picked up her fourth win of the season with sophomore Melanie Coyne struck out nine batters in her first victory on the year.

Junior Faith Bohack had a four RBI night, with senior Alexis Cacioppo four hits and two RBI in the two games.

Game 1: vs. Alabama State (W, 10-2)

Behind another strong outing from Porter, the Warhawks only needed six innings to knock 13 hits and score 10 runs as the Warhawks downed Alabama State (2-5).

Porter picked up her fourth win on the season dealing five inning of two-run softball. Porter spread out seven hits and three strikeouts on the night.

Bohack and senior Alexis Cacioppo lead the offense charge combining for five hits and four RBI.

The Warhawks got on the board early after sophomore Sidney Coy earned a bunt single. Coy stole second and would score off a double to left from Cacioppo to give ULM a 1-0 lead in the first.

Alabama State answered in the second inning with an RBI triple off the bat of sophomore Jazzmin Romero to lock the score at 1-1.

A four-run, third inning opened the game for ULM. After sophomore Rochelle Robertsbeat out a bunt single. Back-to-back doubles from Coy and Cacioppo gave ULM a 3-1 advantage.

Redshirt senior Miyuki drew a walk, and after a double steal, Bohack drove home two with a single to left (5-1 ULM).

ULM started the fourth inning with a double to left field from sophomore Vanessa Garcia. Senior Mackenzie Miller laid down the sacrifice bunt and Roberts picked up the RBI with a sacrifice fly to center (6-1 ULM).

Alabama State pushed a run across in top of the fifth inning with the aid of a leadoff single and ULM error (6-2 ULM), but ULM would answer back in the bottom of the inning.

Navarrete reached on a fielder’s choice, swiped second and advance to third on an Alabama State throwing error. Junior Amye Barre picked up an RBI with a sacrifice fly to left field (7-2 ULM).

Bohack singled up the middle and stole second to move into scoring position. FreshmanCheyanne Lyon singled through the right side to pick up the RBI (8-2 ULM).

The Warhawks put up the decisive runs in the bottom of the sixth. SophomoreMcKinley Marks got the bottom of the inning started with a pinch-hit single.

Roberts bunt single to the pitcher to put two aboard. After stealing third, Miller was picked off. Coy walked and Roberts stole third to put runners on the corners.

Cacioppo would reach on the Alabama State error to push the final two runs across and give ULM the 10-2 victory.

Game 2 vs. Southeast Missouri State (W, 11-3)

ULM took another run-rule victory defeating Southeast Missouri State (0-2) with a two-run homer from Garcia.

Coyne picked up her first win on the season with six-inning, complete game outing with nine strikeouts.

Three Warhawks picked up two RBI a piece as ULM put on another impressive offense performance scoring 11 runs on 11 hits.

The Warhawks opened the game with a three-run second inning. Bohack singled to short to spark the offense. Lyon’s hit by pitch and Garcia’s walk loaded the bases.

Miller reached on a fielder’s choice and the throwing error at home scored the first ULM run (1-0). Roberts groundout would pick up an RBI and put ULM ahead 2-0.

A second SEMO fielding gave ULM a 3-0 advantage after two.

Bohack hit her third homer of the season give ULM the 5-0 push after four innings, but SEMO would answer in the fourth scoring one run off two hits (5-1 ULM).

In the bottom of the fourth, Coy would get aboard with a bunt single to the pitcher followed by a single from Cacioppo on the left side. Navarrete sacrifice bunt moved the runners over.

Sacrifice fly from Barre would send Coy home (6-1 ULM).

ULM would score two more runs in the fifth inning with two-outs. Miller singled to second and Roberts walked to get runners aboard. Marks would drive home both with a two-RBI single through the right side. (8-1 ULM).

A homer from SEMO’ s Kayla Fortner in the top of the sixth would inch the Red Hawks closer (8-3), but ULM would score three in the bottom of the inning, including a two-run bomb from Garcia to take the game 11-3.

The Warhawks return to action in day two of the Mardi Gras Classic with a doubleheader against Alabama State at 11 a.m. and Grambling at 3 p.m.

For the latest on ULM softball, visit ULMWarhawks.com and follow the team on Twitter (@ULM_Softball) and Facebook (facebook.com/ULMSoftball).

----

App State Softball Tops Tar Heels 4-3; Falls to Gamecocks

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Appalachian State University softball made program history on Friday with a 4-3 win over the North Carolina Tar Heels. The win for the Mountaineers was the first all-time against UNC and just the fourth win against an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent. App State is now 4-23 all-time against the ACC, including a 10-4 rout of Syracuse in Boone last season.

Game One: App State 4, North Carolina 3

The Mountaineers (2-4) were on the board right away against the Tar Heels (4-3) in the top half of the first. With the bases empty, Pepper Butler (Delray Beach, Fla./Boca Raton Community) drew a walk to set up Caroline Chambers (Kings Mountain, N.C./Kings Mountain) second career home run. Chambers deposited the first pitch she saw over the left field wall for an early 2-0 lead.

With that same lead, the Mountaineers would tack on more in the third. In a bases loaded situation, Cara Parker (Lake Park, Ga./Lowndes) reached via a hit-by-pitch and earned the RBI and extended the lead to 3-0.

Following a Tar Heel pitching change, freshman Heather Josey (Statesville, N.C./North Iredell) smoked a hard-hit RBI single into right field to make it 4-0.

The Apps weathered a Tar Heel storm in the fifth inning. After relieving Alissa Schoelkopf (Sewell, N.J./Washington Township/Monmouth) in the third, Vanessa Ciocatto (La Habra, Calif./La Habra/Delaware State) surrendered an RBI double before being relieved by Katherine Johnson (Alameda, Calif./Alameda/Wichita State). Coming in with a runner at second base, Johnson gave up an RBI single to center.

Later in the fifth, with the score 4-2 in favor of Appalachian, the third run for UNC would cross on a fielder’s choice. Johnson would end the inning with a strikeout to halt the Tar Heel offense.

UNC would manage just one hit the rest of the way. Schoelkopf re-entered the game in the seventh inning and got a ground out to end the game. The win went to Johnson, her second of the season, while Schoelkopf earned her second save.

Game Two: South Carolina 5, App State 0

Facing one of the top pitchers in the Southeastern Conference proved to be a challenge for the Mountaineers in the second game of the afternoon.

The Gamecock’s Nicki Blue pitched six shutout innings and allowed just one hit, while striking out five. Cynthia Gomez (Oxnard, Calif./Pacifica) singled to lead off the fourth inning for the Mountaineers’ lone hit.

The game remained scoreless through three innings, before South Carolina broke through for three runs in the fourth. The Gamecock’s got a two-run single and an RBI double to take the 3-0 lead.

Two more Gamecock runs crossed in the sixth for the 5-0 lead and eventual final score. Ciocatto received the start and pitched two innings and allowed just three hits and struck out one.

Johnson came in and pitched 1.1 innings, allowing two hits and three earned. Schoelkopf pitched the remaining 3.2 innings and and allowed three hits and two runs, but fanned a game-high six hitters.

The Mountaineers will return to action tomorrow morning with a first pitch at 10 a.m. against the Presbyterian Blue Hose.

----

Troy Softball Splits in Day One of Bulldog Invitational

ATHENS, Georgia - The Troy softball team split a pair of games on Friday in the first day of action the Bulldog Invitation. The Trojans won the first game against Elon 6-2, before falling to SIU Edwardsville, 10-0, at Jack Turner Stadium.

Troy 6, Elon 2

Troy (3-4) scored six unanswered runs against Elon for a comeback win, 6-2, handing the Phoenix their first loss of the season.

Elon (3-1) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but the Trojans came back to cut the deficit in half in the second inning when Meg Willis took a one-out pitch over the scoreboard in left field.

Troy scored four runs in the fifth inning, which started with a sacrifice fly by Michelle Phelps, to tie the game at 2-2. Next, Khadija Neely hit a towering fly ball that was dropped by the Phoenix left fielder, which scored two more, giving Troy its first lead of the contest at 4-2. Neely later scored on a wild pitch to extend Troy’s lead to 5-2.

A Phelps RBI fielder’s choice gave Troy an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Kate Benton led the Trojans at the plate as she went 2-for-3 with two singles.

Ashley Rainey (3-0) pitched lights out after the first inning earning the complete-game victory. Rainey, on the day, gave up two runs, both unearned, on eight hits while striking out three.

SIUE 10, Troy 0

Troy faced OVC Pitcher of the Week, Haley Chambers, in the second game of the Bulldog Invitational.

Troy threatened in the early part of the game when Benton hit a double down the left field line with only one out in the third inning, but a strikeout and a fly out ended the threat.

Benton had the only two hits for Troy in the game, going 2-for-2 with a single and a double.

SIU Edwardsville (5-1) was led by Chambers (4-0) who fanned 13 Trojan batters on the day.

Sara Mock (0-3) took a tough loss for the Trojans pitching 6.2 innings, giving up six runs on 11 hits.

The Trojans face SIU Edwardsville again on Saturday at 2 p.m. CT and then take on host No. 10/9 Georgia at 4:30 p.m. CT.

For more information on Troy Athletics visit TroyTrojans.com or follow us on Twitter at TroyTrojansSB.

----

Eagles Batter Binghamton 21-12, Fall in Extra Innings to Campbell

STATESBORO, GA. – Georgia Southern Softball took a 21-12 win over Binghamton to open their weekend at the 2015 Eagle Classic, but dropped Friday's second game, 7-6 to Campbell in nine innings. The win to open the day was the third-highest scoring game in program history as the Eagles picked up their first win of the season over the Bearcats.

GAME ONE – GS 21 – BINGHAMTON 12

Eagle Softball recorded a historic offensive output in the 2015 home opener with the 21-12 win over Binghamton. The marathon contest, clocking in at a brisk 2:50, was the third-highest scoring game in Georgia Southern history and the first 20+ run game since April 2008.

Emily Snider opened the scoring with a two-run home run in the top of the first. She would go on to finish just a triple shy of the first cycle in program history. Snider also added two walks and four runs scored to tie the school record for runs in a single game. Leadoff hitter Taylor Rogers tallied two hits and matched Snider for the school record with four runs scored. In all, 10 players in school history have scored four runs in a game.

AJ Hamilton went 1-for-5, but did damage with her hit, pounding a grand slam in the fifth inning as part of a five-run inning. Overall, the Eagles scored in six of their seven trips to the plate, including five in the fifth and seventh, and four in the third inning.

Binghamton was led by a 3-for-3 evening from Kate Richard while driving in three runs. Sydney Harbaugh scored three runs for the Bearcats.

Brooke Red earned her first win of the season by going seven innings and allowing six runs off seven hits. Freshman Kierra Camp came on in relief and pitched the final three innings to earn the long save. She allowed the other six runs, with just one earned.

The contest also ranked as the third-most hits in a game for the Eagles with 18 and the third-most total bases with 29. Georgia Southern also worked eight walks and had two batters hit by pitches.

GAME TWO – GS 6 – CAMPBELL 7 – 9 Innings

After an unbelievable opening game to the tournament, the Eagles dropped game two by a single run to Campbell in a contest that needed two extra frames to find a winner.

The Eagles drew first blood in the opening inning, continuing the offense with a Robinson double to plate Rogers who took a leadoff walk.

Campbell, however, not to be outdone, scored runs in the second and third inning as well as two in the fifth to take a 4-1 advantage through five complete innings.

RBI singles by Hamilton and Lexi Allen, plus a bases loaded walk to Mann tied the game again headed to the seventh inning at 4-4. An infield grounder with runners on second and third drove in the go-ahead run for the Camels in the seventh, but a home run from Robinson with one out leveled the score yet again at 5-5 and sent the game to extra innings.

Neither team could get anything going in the eighth, but a two-run home run by Campbell put the visitors ahead 7-5 with three outs remaining for the Eagles.

A leadoff walk to Snider was followed by a pop out and three more walks to plate the Eagles' sixth run of the game and force the Camels into a pitching change with the bases still loaded. Back-to-back strikeouts ended the game as the Eagles dropped the contest 7-6 in nine innings.

The 2015 Eagle Classic continues this weekend with four games on Saturday and three more on Sunday. The Eagles' three remaining games can be seen live on GS All-Access. Neutral site games begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics, twitter.com/GSAthletics, iOS app Georgia Southern Eagles and Android app Eagles GATA. For tickets to Georgia Southern athletics events, call 1-800-GSU-WINS or visit GSEagles.com.

----

Texas State Softball Drops Two At CenturyLink Classic

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State softball team dropped a pair of contests to open up the 2015 CenturyLink Classic Friday afternoon. In the first game of the day for Texas State, the Bobcats fell by a score of 4-3 to Grand Canyon before falling to Big 12 foe Texas Tech by a 5-2 margin in the night cap.

Kortney Koroll's home run in the first inning of game one highlighted the Bobcat offense that struggled to find holes throughout the afternoon. Koroll's home run was her second of the season.

Texas State held the 2-0 early lead for a pair of innings before the Grand Canyon offense came alive in the third. The 'Lopes strung together five hits including three to lead off the inning to ultimately take a 3-2 lead over the Bobcats.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Antelopes tacked on one more to double up their lead over Texas State.

Down two in the top of the sixth inning, freshman Ariel Ortiz extended her hitting streak to six with a bloop single to right field. Her single proceeded to score Braegan Hamilton for the Bobcats third run of the game. The Bobcats hopes of regaining the lead in the sixth were diminished on a double play that got the 'Lopes out of the inning.

Texas State finished with four hits against Grand Canyon while allowing eight. Randi Rupp was handed her third loss of the season in seven innings of work.

In the top of the fourth inning of game two, Texas Tech broke open the game with a grand slam with two outs to take a 5-0 lead.

Texas State rallied in the bottom of the seventh as it opened up the inning with a pinch hit double by Isabelle Barnes. That double was followed up with another double by Hamilton. The rally continued when Kelli Baker singled up the middle to score Barnes and Hamilton. With two outs, the Bobcats had runners on every base before Texas Tech forced a pop up to end the game.

Baker finished the second game going 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI. Hamilton also recorded two hits in game two for the Bobcats. Ashley Wright picked up her first loss of the season and Taylor Webb came in and put in three scoreless innings in the circle for Texas State.

Texas State will continue play Saturday afternoon in the CenturyLink Classic. The Bobcats start the day against Texas Tech at 3 p.m. and will conclude the afternoon against UTSA at 5:30 p.m. Live stats, live video, and live audio will be available at www.txstatebobcats.com. Fans can also access the Tournament Central page located on the softball home page.