Saturday, February 28, 2015
Clutch Plays Help Fifth-Ranked Cajuns Earn Split With No. 4 Alabama
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Samantha Walsh went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a pair of RBI and the No. 5-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns softball team withstood a pair of late scoring opportunities to earn a 2-1 victory over No. 4-ranked Alabama in the nightcap of a doubleheader on Saturday at Rhoads Stadium.
In the opener, Haylie McCleaney went 2-for-3 and scored a pair of runs while Sydney Littlejohn scattered three hits and fanned five as Alabama took a 5-1 victory.
Jordan Wallace picked up the victory in the nightcap for Louisiana (15-1) as she scattered five hits and fanned six. Leandra Maly and Haley Hayden each had singles for the Ragin' Cajuns while Lexie Elkins and Kelli Martinez each drew a pair of walks.
The final game of the series is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Sunday. The game can be heard in the Lafayette area on ESPN 1420 AM and can be seen on SEC Network-plus and ESPN3.
"It was two good teams going at each other," Louisiana head coach Michael Lotief said. "I thought their kid (Sydney Littlejohn) pitched incredible in game one and their freshman (Alexis Osorio) threw the ball well in game two. I thought our kid (Jordan Wallace) showed some guts in game two.
"Our hitters kept adjusting throughout the game, and so did Alabama. It was just good softball. It may not look like that to the casual fan. But when you know what's going on with all of the adjustments being made and everything that's being done to try to get an advantage in this game, it's just good quality softball."
GAME 2 – Louisiana 2, Alabama 1
Walsh excelled with both her glove and her bat in the nightcap in helping Louisiana earn a split in a battle between two teams that reached the Women's College World Series in 2014. Her solo home run Alexis Osorio (5-2) to lead off the fourth inning off erased a 1-0 lead by Alabama (14-4) before her two-out single to center in the fifth scored Hayden.
The junior third baseman also fueled Louisiana's effort in the field as snagged a Marisa Runyon liner for an eventual inning-ending double play in the second inning before her diving grab of Leona Lafaele's liner in the fifth kept the Crimson Tide off the bases.
"She saved us," Lotief said about Walsh. "She's good in the heart of the lineup and can go off. I thought a lot of our kids had some quality at-bats, but never finished them off. Today, it was her turn to finish them off. She's good. She works hard, has good hand-eye coordination and is smart. She's a good hitter."
Wallace (6-0) struck out the side in the first inning for Louisiana and kept Alabama off the board until the third inning when Lafaele led off the frame with a triple off the glove of a diving Martinez in right-center field and scored on Chandler Dare's sacrifice fly to left.
The Ragin' Cajuns kept Alabama off the board in the final two innings after the Crimson Tide put their first two runners on base in each frame. Wallace issued a walk to McCleaney to lead off the sixth before a single by Demi Turner and a sacrifice bunt by Danielle Richard put runners on second and third with one out.
But Wallace got Chaunsey Bell to ground back to the circle on an attempted safety squeeze before fanning Danae Hays to end the sixth inning.
Alabama threatened again in the seventh after singles by both Jadyn Spencer and Marisa Runyon before the Cajuns defense stepped up. Wallace got Lafaele to ground into a fielder's choice as Spencer was tagged out at third for the first out before Hayden made a diving stop of a grounder by Dare and retired the speedster for the second out.
Wallace then got McCleaney, who entered the game with a .588 batting average, to ground out to Hayden at second, ending the threat and giving Louisiana its first win away from Lamson Park this season.
Spencer had two hits to lead Alabama with Osorio allowing four hits, striking out 12 and issuing six walks in a losing effort.
Game 1 – Alabama 5, Louisiana 1
Alabama scored runs in the first, third and fourth innings off Louisiana starter Christina Hamilton (3-1) as it built a 4-0 lead and kept the Ragin' Cajuns off-balance at the plate. McCleaney scored in the first inning on a grounder by Bell before reaching base on a third-inning single, moving to third on a single by Turner and scoring on a throwing error.
The Crimson Tide extended their lead to 4-0 in the fourth when Spencer hit a one-out single and Runyon followed with a two-run homer to center-field.
Littlejohn (6-0), who struck out five and walked three, held Louisiana hitless until Hayden led off the fifth inning with a bloop single to left field. Walsh added a two-out double off the left-field wall to score Hayden and cut the Alabama lead to 4-1 before the Crimson Tide added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth when Hays hit a solo home run off Ragin' Cajuns reliever Kylee Jo Trahan.
Hamilton allowed three earned runs and fanned two batters in five innings for the Ragin' Cajuns. Maly added a pinch-hit single and Elkins walked twice for Louisiana, which stranded five runners on base.
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Mountaineer Softball Sweeps Two Games in Dominating Fashion
ROCK HILL, S.C. – Appalachian State University softball moved to an above .500 record for the first time since the 2013 season with two wins with a 9-0 run-rule victory over Wagner and then a 13-7 beating of Austin Peay.
Game One: App State 9, Wagner 0 F/5
The Mountaineers (8-7) put a lead foot on the gas pedal on Saturday and never let up. App State put up two runs in the first off of a Haley Stewart two-run double to center field to take an early lead.
Later in the third inning, Cara Parker tripled in a run and then was brought home by Heather Josey RBI double. Tiffany Taynor then singled through the right side to drive in Josey. It was Taynor's first career start and RBI.
With a commanding 5-0 advantage, the Apps put up a four run fourth inning to put the run-rule in effect. Following singles from Dani Heichen and Sarah Warnock and a walk from Stewart, Ashley Seering singled on a smoked ball to the wall in center.
Caroline Chambers drew a walk with the bases loaded and then Josey singled to right field to drive in two more runs.
Vanessa Ciocatto pitched a complete game three-hit shutout. It was the first complete game shutout and third win for Ciocatto as a member of the Black and Gold. Ciocatto also struck out four batters in the effort.
For the game, the Mountaineers would at the time collect a season-high 13 hits – topping their previous 2015 total of 11.
Game Two: App State 13, Austin Peay 7
In game two, the Mountaineers didn't let up and put on a hit parade in a dominating effort. App State would get out to an early 3-0 lead in the first.
With two outs, Warnock homered down the right field line. The home run was the second of the season and eighth of the senior's career. After Stewart walked, Seering ripped an RBI double to right center and then came home on a Josey RBI single.
The Apps would tack on one run in the second when Heichen and Cynthia Gomez simultaneously attempted to steal bases. The throw went down to second base and Gomez was able to slide in safe at home.
Austin Peay would tack on its first run in the bottom half and App State woud lead 4-1 going to the top of the third. In the third, Seering hit her first home run of the season and eighth of her career to deep left field.
Josey would later score on an error before Taynor blitzed a ball to the center field wall to drive in her second run of the day and first of the game.
The Governors would score once in the fourth and cut the Appalachian lead to 7-3. The Mountaineers would put up four more runs in the sixth inning. Heichen and Warnock would open the inning with singles, which was followed by an RBI single from Stewart.
On back-to-back pitches, Seering and Josey were hit and another run scored. Parker then broke through offensively and doubled in two runs to put App State up 11-3.
Following the four-run outburst, Austin Peay scored twice and kept the game going. In the next half inning, Stewart crushed a two-run homer to put the Mountaineers ahead by eight again, 13-5. The home run was the third of the year for the freshman, which currently leads the team. The Governors would tack on two more runs in a failed rally effort in the bottom half.
With 19 hits in the game, the Mountaineers topped its season-best from the game before and fell just one hit short of a program record. Last season, App State totaled 20 hits in a 20-19 loss to UNCG on April 26.
Ciocatto pitched 3.2 innings and allowed three runs on three hits, while striking out two. Schoelkopf pitched 3.1 innings and gave up four runs on five hits and fanned two batters.
The Mountaineers will return to action on Tuesday, March 3 for a single-game against USC Upstate in Spartanburg, S.C. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.
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Softball Sweeps Connecticut Saturday Afternoon
AUBURN, Ala. – Commanding pitching and solid offense led the Texas State softball team to a Saturday sweep of the Connecticut Huskies by scores of 7-1 and 9-0. Texas State improves to 11-10 overall and head coach Ricci Woodard is now just five games away from eclipsing 500 wins in her 15 year career at Texas State.
Freshman shortstop Ariel Ortiz led the way Saturday morning, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the plate with a pair of doubles and a grand slam. Randi Rupp stepped into the circle and pitched both contests for the Bobcats, striking out 17 batters while allowing just five hits and four walks in 12.0 innings of work.
After a scoreless first inning, the Bobcats got on the board first in the bottom half of the second. The Bobcats strung together a hit and a sacrifice bunt to score Lexi Fryar who led the inning off with a walk.
Texas State maintained its 1-0 lead through four innings before adding insurance runs in the fifth and the sixth. Two singles and a wild pitch combined with a sacrifice bunt scored two to give Texas State a 3-0 lead in the fifth.
Ortiz's grand slam in the bottom half of the sixth scored Kelli Baker, Kimberlin Naivar, and Sara Rupp to give Texas State a 7-0 lead on the designated visiting team. UConn answered with one run in the top of the seventh with a solo home run, but a pair of ground outs and a strikeout by Rupp ended the game in favor of the Bobcats.
Rupp finished the first game with nine strikeouts and just two hits allowed.
Texas State produced 14 hits and scored in all but one inning in game two of the day against the Huskies. Four of those hits occurred in the first inning to score the first three runs of the contest. Baker led the game off with a single to centerfield.
The Bobcats tacked on two more in the second after Ortiz, the first runner on the bases in the inning, scored on a fielder's choice by Kortney Koroll and Courtney Harris scored on a sacrifice fly by Kendall Wiley.
A single by Wiley in the fourth scored Ortiz for the sixth run of the game before Baker launched a three-run shot in the top of the fifth to give Texas State the 9-0 lead.
Six Bobcats recorded two hits in the second game and Rupp finished with just three hits allowed and eight strikeouts as she improved to 8-6 on the year.
The Bobcats will now begin Sun Belt Conference play next weekend against conference newcomer Georgia Southern. The two squads will play a double header on Saturday, March 7 before a single game on Sunday. Live stats will be available at www.txstatebobcats.com.
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No. 24 Jaguar Softball Downs Tennessee State, 6-3, on Saturday
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 24 University of South Alabama softball weathered a fourth-inning Tennessee State rally to win, 6-3, on Saturday at the 2015 Carolina Classic in Columbia, S.C., the Jaguars stretching their current win streak to five games.
USA (13-3) went ahead, 3-0, in the bottom of the first frame and tacked on one more in the second and two more in the top of the fourth, before the Tigers cut that lead in half in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Tennessee State threatened further damage in the bottom of the fifth, after drawing three walks from South Alabama reliever Devin Brown (6-2), but the freshman forced a bases-loaded grounder to Jaguar junior third baseman Emily Messer, who collected an inning-ending putout at third to shut the door.
Sophomore Chloe Rathburn was 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI and a run scored to lead the Jaguars on Saturday, a day after supplying a walk-off double to propel USA past Charleston Southern.
Junior center fielder Stephanie Pilkington was 1-for-2 with two runs scored and an RBI, including a walk, as the Lake City, Fla., reached for the 16th time in as many games this season. Messer scored a pair of runs, and senior shortstop Kaitlyn Griffith had one hit good for a pair of RBI. Senior first baseman Amanda Herron and freshman second baseman Kaleigh Todd each scored a run.
Brown was credited with her sixth win of the year after throwing 3 1/3 shutout innings in relief of starter Kalen McGill. Brown struck out three to four walks and allowed one hit. McGill went 3 2/3, giving up three runs (all earned) on six Tiger hits, while striking out a pair.
USA was outhit, 7-5, on the day, marking just the second occasion all season that the Jaguars took a backseat in the category; still, South Alabama improved to 2-0 when being outhit thus far.
The Jaguars saw their six-run lead sliced in half in the bottom of the fourth Chelsey Buchanan lifted a sacrifice fly to left center, scoring Joselynn Yates from third after the Tigers loaded the bases on a pair of singles and a hit by pitch.
TSU shortstop Danice Gleason then tripled to right center to drive two more Tiger runners in.
Brown entered for McGill after the three-base hit and forced a fly out to left field to stop the bleeding.
"We've got to lock in to competing as a team every pitch," said USA head coach Becky Clark. "If we do that, we'll continue to have success."
South Alabama wasted no time offensively on Saturday, beginning with a three-run opening frame. Messer swiped the first run after reaching on a Tiger fielding error and coming around on a Pilkington RBI triple. Rathburn then drove Pilkington in with a double before scoring herself on Griffith's triple.
Rathburn ripped a two-out RBI single through the right side an inning later to score Todd, who drew a four-pitch walk, as USA went ahead, 4-0, after two innings.
After Messer led off with an infield single in the top of the fourth, TSU reliever Savannah Womack hit Rathburn, Pilkington and Griffith in order, which allowed Messer to score, before Herron provided an RBI groundout that plated Pilkington.
Tennessee State starter Amber Gaylon (0-4) took the loss after giving up four runs (three earned) on as many hits and three walks in 1 2/3 innings. Womack gave up two runs (both earned) on one hit with a pair of walks in 5 1/3 innings.
The Jaguars face Marshall at 9 a.m. and South Carolina at 11:30 a.m. CT on Sunday. A link to live stats can be found by accessing the Jaguar softball schedule page. In-game Twitter updates are provided via the official USA softball handle, @USAJaguarSoftball.
The game versus Sout Carolina will be broadcast by SECNetwork+. A link to live video, provided via WatchESPN.com, is also included on the Jaguar softball schedule page.
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).
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Troy Defeats Colgate, Game Against Stetson Cancelled
DeLAND, Florida – The Troy softball team battled rain and tough field conditions as it defeated Colgate, 4-3, in a come back, walk-off win on Saturday at Patricia Wilson Field in DeLand, Fla.
The Trojans second game of the day, against host Stetson, was canceled. Troy and Stetson will meet in the Stetson Invitation championship game at 11 a.m. on Sunday.
Amanda Winters hit a two-out, walk-off single with the bases loaded to score the winning run as part of a three run inning in the bottom of the seventh for Troy. The single was Winters' second walk-off hit of the season, as she previously did so against UConn on February 21.
Troy (12-7) tied the game in the bottom of the seventh inning on a throwing error by the Raider third baseman that scored Khadija Kneely and Chelsea Eytel, who both reached on walks. Kate Benton, who reached on the error ended up at third. Hannah Day walked and Michelle Phelps loaded the bases after being hit by a pitch before Winters came up to win the game for the Trojans.
Colgate (0-3) scored three runs in the top of the fourth inning. Mariel Schlaefer singled down the left field line to start the inning and stole second. Alessandra Moore singled to center field to score the first run of the game. Immediately following, Holly Grennan hit a two-run home run to give the Raiders a 3-0 lead.
The Trojans bounced back and scored a run in the bottom of the fourth on a Benton single up the middle to score pinch runner Allison Moore, to cut the deficit to two runs.
Jaycee Affeldt (6-2) picked up the win after entering in relief for Sara Mock who got the start. Affeldt pitched two innings and only gave up two hits and struck out one. Mock pitched five innings, allowed three earned runs and gave up six hits and struck out three.
Kira Griswold (0-2) suffered the loss for Colgate. Griswold gave up four runs, one earned, on five hits and struck out four. She also walked 12 Trojan batters and hit three.
The second game of the day against Stetson, scheduled for 3 p.m., was cancelled due to inclement weather. However, the two teams will play each other in the Stetson Invitational Championship Game at 11 a.m. on Sunday.
For more information on Troy softball, visit TroyTrojans.com or follow us on Twitter at @TroyTrojansSB.
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UTA drops two at Wildcat Classic
TUCSON, Ariz. – After sweeping through Day 1 of the Wildcat Classic, UT Arlington had a tougher time at the plate and dropped both games on Saturday at Hillenbrand Stadium.
The Mavericks (11-7) were able to bring home just three runs a day after scoring 27 in two games. No. 14 Arizona opened up what was a 4-2 lead with a five-run fourth to pull away. The Mavs then had just three hits against UC Riverside to fall in the finale.
"We got a lot of opportunities but didn't put them away," UT Arlington coach Kristie Fox said. "What the box score doesn't show is how many hard hit balls we had right at people and that happens sometimes."
UTA finishes play in the Wildcat Classic on Sunday against Colorado State at 12 p.m. CT.
Game 1: No. 14 Arizona 10, UT Arlington 2
UT Arlington threatened early after leaving two on base in the top of the first, however it was Arizona who would get on the board first. The Wildcats used a two-run homer on two outs to open up scoring in the bottom half of the inning.
The Mavericks responded in the second as Meagan Michele scored on Haley Henson's single to center.
Arizona extended its lead to 4-1 in the third as Fox's sister, Arizona's Kellie Fox, crossed the plate for the first of her two runs scored in the game on a two-run single.
Sandra Mendoza cut the lead in half in the fourth, as UTA strung three hits together in the frame. Mendoza's single scored Rebecca Stokes, while Henson was thrown out on a bullet of a throw from the centerfielder.
The Wildcats then pulled away in the fourth with a five-run inning coming on seven hits. They would complete the run-rule in the next inning on a sacrifice fly that scored a run to end the game.
UTA had eight hits in the contest, Henson leading with a 2-2 effort from the plate.
Game 2: UC Riverside 2, UT Arlington 1
The Mavericks' bats were quiet early in the game before UTA picked up its first hit on a single from Anderson in the fourth.
Trailing 1-0 entering the fourth, the Mavs tied the game as the team put together a two-out rally. Jolene Schaefer drew a one-out walk and two hitters later, Sandra Mendoza knocked a triple down the right-field line to score Schaefer from first.
The teams would go scoreless over the next two innings before UC Riverside broke the tie in the sixth.
Sam Montes replaced Kayla Donaldson in the circle to begin the inning. The Highlanders opened the inning with a leadoff single that was eventually pushed to second on a sacrifice bunt. A single with one out then brought home the eventual game-winner.
Stokes put pressure on UC Riverside in the seventh with a one-out single. Schaefer pushed Stokes to second on a sacrifice bunt, but UTA grounded out in its final two at-bats to end the game.
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Georgia Southern and Georgia State rained out, will look to play on Sunday