Mavs Make History in Reaching 10-0
ARLINGTON, Texas – For the first time in UT Arlington softball history, the program is 10-0 after sweeping a doubleheader at Allan Saxe Field on Saturday.
The Mavericks completed the feat behind a pair of run-rule wins in the Maverick Invitational. UTA beat Princeton 9-1 in the first game before blanking South Dakota State 8-0. The perfect start bested a 9-0 open to the 1980 season.
"It feels good," UT Arlington coach Kristie Fox said. "It is hard to win 10 games in a row at all, so for the girls to come out and stay focused and not let the moments get too big, I am really proud of them. Our pitching staff is doing a good job of coming together and helping each other out."
Sophomore Sandra Mendoza led the way offensively with six hits through two games. Mendoza knocked in six RBI, three coming in each game, and crossed the plate four times.
"It feels awesome," Mendoza said of the undefeated start. "I knew we could do it and it is always positive out here. I love the girls and love the team. It is always a positive atmosphere."
Mendoza produced three doubles in Day 2 action, all down the left-field line.
"Sandra is swinging it really well," Fox said. "One of the pieces that people are missing is the reason Sandra is getting so many opportunities is because Krista Rude has been absolutely amazing for us in the seven-hole. She is pretty much making Sandra a three-hole hitter, which is what we like. I like seeing them work together like that."
Rude was 3-for-4 in Game 1 and followed it up with a 1-for-3 performance in Game 2, adding a run.
With the offense clicking, the UTA pitching staff allowed just one run on Saturday. Freshman Samantha Clakley (4-0) pitched a one-hitter over 6.0 innings in Game 2. Clakley stuck out four and didn't allow a hit after the game's leadoff hitter singled.
"I kept the hitters off balance and my defense worked really well behind me," Clakley said. "I had a few ground balls in the infield and they helped me out a lot."
After playing the first 10 games at home, UTA hits the road for an eight-game road trip that begins at the Charleston Southern Tournament on Feb. 26.
Following a visit to Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 26-28, the Mavericks return to Allan Saxe Field on March 11-13 for the highly anticipated Maverick Classic. UTA hosts Arizona, Texas and Samford over the three-day tournament.
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App Drops a Pair in South Carolina
CONWAY, S.C. - Appalachian State University continued its play in South Carolina on Saturday with day two of Coastal Carolina's Kickin' Chicken Classic. The Mountaineers lost both games by scores of 11-1 against Towson in six innings and 14-8 vs. Seton Hall.
The Black and Gold fell to 0-9 and on the other side, the Tigers sat at 6-2 with a Saturday split while the Pirates were 6-2 heading into tonight's game with Cleveland State.
Individually, Jenny Dodd had yet another great day at the dish. Dodd went 4-of-7 with two runs scored, a double, her first two career home runs (both in game two), and three RBI. She became the first Mountaineer to hit two home runs in a game since Cara Parker did so on April 29, 2015 against ETSU and is the first freshman to accomplish the feat since Parker did it on May 4, 2014 at Furman.
This season, the freshman catcher leads the team in hits with 10, is first on the squad in batting average at .385 (10-of-26) and has had three multi-hit games.
Game One: Towson 11, App State 1 (6 Inn.)
Towson's offense was simply too much to handle in game one as the Tigers scored two in the first, one in the fourth, three in the fifth, and five in the sixth. Appalachian's lone run came in the bottom of the fifth when Dodd singled in Megan Walker.
Vanessa Ciocatto (0-4) was handed the loss after she lasted just one-third of an inning and gave up two earned runs on two hits with a walk. In relief, Katherine Johnson tossed 3.1 innings and Annaleise Kennedy followed with 2.1 innings of work.
Game Two: Seton Hall 14, App State 8
Game two lasted three hours and saw a combined 26 hits, 22 runs, 18 runners left on base, five home runs, and four errors. Seton Hall was already ahead 7-0 after one and a half innings before things began to click offensively for the Apps.
In the bottom of the second, the Black and Gold put up a three spot thanks to an RBI single from Heather Josey, a sacrifice fly from Maddy Bloom and an RBI single by Natalie Orcutt. The Pirates scored four in the top of the third to go up 11-3, but Appalachian State wasn't done yet.
In the bottom of the third, Dodd hit a solo home run to right and Pepper Butler brought in a pair of runs with a double to right-center field. That barrage cut the deficit back to five at 11-6 before App State scored another run in the next inning to make it 11-7. That run scored on Dodd's second home run of the game, a blast to right center.
However, Seton Hall scored one in the sixth and two in the seventh to make it 14-7 and the Apps only countered with one run in the bottom of the seventh to make the final score 14-8.
Katie Williford fell to 0-3 with two-thirds of an inning pitched while Claire Eosso lasted two innings and Kennedy took care of the final 4.1 frames.
Appalachian will play its final game of the Kickin' Chicken Classic on Sunday with another 9:30 a.m. first pitch against Seton Hall.
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NO. 23 USA FALLS IN EXTRA INNINGS TO MISSISSIPPI STATE
MOBILE, Ala. – Mississippi State scratched two runs across in the top of the eighth inning to hand No. 23 University of South Alabama softball its first loss of the season, 4-2, on opening night of the 2016 Mardi Gras Invitational.
Samford defeated SIU-Edwardsville, 3-2, in the opening game of the event on Friday.
Amanda Ivy's one-out double in the top of the sixth inning put a pair of Mississippi State runners in scoring position for Katie Anne Bailey to deliver an RBI groundout that scored Loryn Nichols, tying the score and effectively sending the game into extra innings.
Mississippi State (6-0) scratched a pair of runs across in the top of the eighth inning to hand South Alabama (5-1) its first loss of the season.
"It was a hard-fought game; it was played well on both sides," said USA head coach Becky Clark. "We had a hard time finding the big hit tonight. Devin [Brown] pitched well; they square some stuff up, but we were able to get out of it.
"We're going to see how we respond to this when we come out tomorrow."
USA tied scoring at 1-1 in the bottom of the third and took a one-run lead in the fifth frame. Kristian Foster's base hit in the bottom of the third inning plated her classmate Kaleigh Todd, who singled to lead off and stole second.
Again, the pair linked up in the bottom of the fifth, when Foster singled to right center to score her counterpart after Todd reached on a Bulldog fielding error and swiped second once more. The hosts held their lead for a half-inning.
Mississippi State opened scoring in the top of the first inning on a bases-loaded hit by pitch. Jaguar starter Devin Brown gave up a pair of one-out base hits before hitting Mackenzie Toler and Sarai Niu to score Kayla Winkfield.
Four Bulldogs recorded multiple hits, with Winkfield and Caroline Seitz providing two RBI apiece. Nichols and Ivy each scored a run. Reliever Holly Ward earned the win for the Bulldogs, improving to 4-0. Ward threw three shutout innings and struck out three to two walks.
Brown suffered the first loss of her sophomore season after giving up all four runs (earned) on six hits, matching the season total she entered the night with. She struck out nine batters and walked six. Destin Vicknair pitched one inning of relief and gave up two hits.
Foster finished the night 3-for-3 with two RBI. Emily Messer was 2-for-5, while Todd, Paige Holmes and Haleigh Lane each had a hit.
South Alabama faces Samford tomorrow at 11:15 a.m. and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville at 3:45 p.m.
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ULM Extends Winning Streak to Five in Day Two Sweep of Tiger Classic
NASHVILLE – The ULM softball team extended its winning streak to five Saturday after posting wins over host Tennessee State and Evansville Saturday at the Tiger Classic inside Tiger Softball Field.
ULM 4, Tennessee State 3
Freshman Casey Waterman earned her first win of the season after pitching four innings in relief in ULM’s first game Saturday which resulted in a 4-3 victory over host Tennessee State at Tiger Softball Field.
Junior Rochelle Roberts reached first on an infield single and stole second to start the game. Senior Faith Bohack then advanced Roberts to third on a groundout before freshman Sydney McKay drove her in on a single to left field, giving the Warhawks (7-2) an early 1-0 edge.
The Tigers (2-6) responded with a run of their own in the bottom half. After junior Courtney Gearlds led off with a single to right and advanced to second on a Katlynn Kaminski wild pitch, redshirt junior Joselynn Yates brought her home on a single up the middle to tie the game at one apiece. Later in the inning with runners on first and second, senior Lauren Dreitlein singled up the middle which was supposed to score Yates. McKay, however, disallowed that run by throwing Yates out at the plate.
ULM was unable to bring home sophomore Hunter Hogan in the second after she hit a two-out double to left field and advanced to third on a wild throw. On the other hand, TSU scored in the bottom half of the second on a two-out single from junior Danica Gleason which put the Tigers ahead 2-1.
The Warhawks regained the advantage in the top of the third when Bohack scored Roberts on a double to right and junior McKinley Marks plated junior Vanessa Garcia on a single to left center, putting ULM ahead 3-2 after two and a half innings.
Waterman then took the mound for ULM and did not allow a hit until the seventh inning.
The Warhawks scratched an important insurance run on a wild pitch in the sixth as the Tigers also scored one in the seventh on an RBI triple from Gearlds. Junior Melanie Coyne then entered to retire the final two batters and earn her first save of the season.
ULM 15, Evansville 0 (five innings)
Seniors Amye Barre and Faith Bohack drove in four runs each and junior Melanie Coyne tossed a complete game, one-hit shutout in ULM’s 15-0 win over Evansville Saturday night at Tiger Softball Field.
ULM (8-2) scored at least one run in four of the five innings played and scored six in each of the final two innings. Evansville (6-2) was kept off balance throughout the game and only managed one hit, a one-out single by freshman Tess Hupe in the bottom of the fourth, during Coyne’s masterful performance.
Coyne struck out four batters and threw 51 of her 75 total pitches for strikes.
Seven different Warhawks had an RBI and Barre recorded a double and a homerun en route to her four RBIs. Sophomore Cheyanne Lyon went 3-3 with a triple and Roberts filled up the stat sheet with two hits, two walks, three runs, an RBI and two stolen bases.
The Warhawks return to action tomorrow versus East Tennessee State in a 9:30 a.m. first pitch inside Tiger Softball Field.
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Panthers Lose to Fifth-Ranked Alabama, Set Attendance Record
ATLANTA – Hosting the fifth-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, Georgia State’s softball team was defeated 9-0 in six innings in front of the largest crowd in Heck Softball Complex history. The No. 5 ranking made Alabama (9-1) the highest-ranked team to face GSU (3-6) at Panthersville.
Mandy Blackwell had two of Georgia State’s four hits on the day as Alabama’s Sydney Littlejohn went the distance in the circle while striking out seven Panthers. Freshman Reagan Morgan, less than 24 hours after hitting a walkoff single against Maryland, doubled in the sixth inning, but the Panthers couldn’t manage to get on the board. The Crimson Tide scored in each inning except for the first. First baseman Leona Lafaele led the way with a 3-for-3 day with 3 RBI and 3 runs scored.
The stands were packed for the 12:30 p.m. game as a total of 866 people were in attendance, making it the largest crowd in Heck Softball Complex history. Alabama also became the highest-ranked team to play at GSU’s home stadium.
GSU wraps up the Panther Invitational Sunday at 3 p.m. versus Mercer. The Panthers are home again on Wednesday for a 3 p.m. contest against St. John’s.
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Eagle Softball Picks Up Two Wins In Florida
MADEIRA BEACH, Fla. – The Georgia Southern softball team continued play at the EMU Madeira Beach Spring Invitational Saturday with a 9-5 win over Marist and a heart-pounding 6-5 win in nine innings over Villanova.
GAME 1 – GS 9, MARIST 5
The Eagles jumped all over Marist early on, scoring six runs early on. In the first inning, Morgan Robinson drove in Taylor Rogers with a single and then in the second inning, GS put up a five spot. Rogers cleared the bags with a three-run double to the gap and one pitch later, Emily Snider hit a two-run home run to make it 6-0.
The Red Foxes slowly clawed their way back into it, scoring a run in the fourth inning and four more in the fifth to make it a one-run game. In the sixth inning, Lydia Witkowski singled up the middle and Rogers picked up her third hit of the game on a bunt. With no one covering third base, Witkowski headed there and the throw was airmailed to the fence, allowing her to score. In the seventh inning, pinch hitter Michelle Mazur singled up the middle to drive in a run and the Eagles scored one last run on an error.
GS pounded out 11 hits at the plate, led by three from Rogers, who also drove in three runs and scored a pair of runs. Witkowski, Hannah Farrell and Snider each had two hits while Robinson and Mazur had one.
Dixie Raley (W, 2-2) went four plus innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on four hits with six walks and seven strikeouts. Kiera Camp (S, 1) went the final three innings to pick up the save. She allowed two runs on three hits.
GAME 2 – GS 6, VU 5 (9)
The Eagles got a run on the board in the first inning thanks to a double by Robinson off the fence in right field. The hit allowed Snider, who reached on a walk, to score from first base.
After coming close in almost every inning, Villanova finally broke through in the fifth inning, scoring three runs. The Eagles responded right back in their half of the inning as India Davis and Rogers each reached on bunt singles and then Snider crushed a 2-2 offering deep into the setting sunset of the Florida coast to snatch the lead right back.
In the sixth inning, Villanova came right back with a two-run home run that just curled inside the fair pole down the left field line, tying the game up. The game would go to extra innings, and while Villanova threatened both times, Raley slammed the door shut both times to set up the exciting ninth frame for the Eagles.
By rule, Davis was placed on second to start the frame and moved up on Witkowski's sacrifice bunt. Rogers reached on an infield single, but Davis couldn't score. After Rogers stole second base, Snider walked to set up the dramatic ending. McGuire then took four pitches from VU's Kate Poppe to draw the walk-off walk and the win, sending the Eagles streaming out of the dugout in jubilation.
Heather Felt made her season debut and went five-plus innings in the no-decision. She allowed four runs on five hits with six walks and two strikeouts. Raley (W, 3-2) picked up the win in relief, giving up one run on two hits with a walk and three strikeouts in four innings of work.
The Eagles had nine hits, two apiece from Robinson, Rogers and Snider and one apiece from McGuire and Davis.
The Eagles (4-5) will finish up the weekend on Sunday, taking on UMass-Lowell at 11:30 a.m.
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No. 7 Louisiana Takes Rubber Match with No. 5 Oregon
LAFAYETTE – Haley Hayden provided the lead with a three-run double in the second inning and Alex Stewart fended off late-inning threats as the No. 7-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns softball team topped No. 5 Oregon, 5-4, in the third and final meeting between the two teams in the 30th Annual Louisiana Classics held Saturday at Lamson Park.
The win gave the Ragin' Cajuns (7-1) a 2-1 edge over the Ducks (6-3) in head-to-head meetings in the tournament.
No. 7 Louisiana wraps up play in the Louisiana Classics on Sunday at 12:30 p.m., with a matchup against Central Arkansas. The Ragin' Cajuns and Bears are meeting in a Lamson Park-based tournament for the third straight season.
In picking up her second victory over No. 5 Oregon in the Louisiana Classics, Stewart (5-0, 1.50 ERA) bested All-American Cheridan Hawkins who was charged with five runs over 2-2/3 innings.
Stewart did not yield a walk for her fifth consecutive to start the 2016 season, extending of string of walk-free innings to 28. She held the Ducks to eight hits over seven innings and struck out four.
Hayden's three RBI were a game-high total and marked the junior second baseman's second multiple-RBI contest of three-plus RBI this season.
Lexie Elkins finished 2-for-4 at the plate – her fourth multiple-hit game – the first hit being a solo home run off of Hawkins that gave the Cajuns a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning.
Oregon drew even in the bottom half of the first on a solo home run by Nikki Udria.
Hawkins, who was unable to command the strike zone as she did on Friday, issued three straight one-out walks, loading the bases for the Ragin' Cajuns in the top of the second inning. Two batters later and Hayden rifled a double deep into left center to clear the bases and give Louisiana a 4-1 edge.
A two-out RBI single by DJ Sanders in the third inning scored Kelsey Vincent (one-out walk) with what proved to be the decisive run.
Stewart, who zipped through the first two innings with 25 pitches, was pressured by the Ducks from the third through sixth innings as the visitors began to become patient at the plate and work the counts.
Sammie Puentes and Alyssa Gillespie singled in the bottom of the third inning to set the stage for a fly foul sacrifice and Koral Costa RBI single that trimmed the Cajuns lead to 5-3.
Megan Kleist, who relieved Hawkins in the circle in the third inning, tossed 4-1/3 innings of three-hit relief to prevent the Cajuns from adding to their lead. She was aided by inning-ending double plays turned by her defense in the fifth and sixth inning, the latter with the bases loaded for Louisiana.
Oregon scratched an unearned run in the fifth inning after Gillespie reached on a fielding error by Vincent, moved to third on an Udria bunt single and scored on a wild pitch.
Still with no outs in the fifth inning, Stewart protected the 5-4 lead as she induced a fly ball out from Costa and Hailey Decker lined into a double play.
Stewart's last stand came in the bottom of the sixth after a double by Geri Ann Glasco gave the Ducks runners at second and third with one out. Gwen Svekis fouled out at third base and Punetes filed out to left field.
The finishing touch on the triumph for Stewart in the seventh inning included retiring the Ducks' 1-2-3 hitters (Gillespie, Udria, Costa) in order in the seventh inning.
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Bobcats Off To Best Start In School History After Sweep Saturday
RUSTON, La. – The Texas State softball team is off to the best start in school history after earning a pair of victories over Abilene Christian and Belmont Saturday afternoon. The 'Cats defeated the Wildcats for the third time this season by a score of 2-0 before coming from behind to defeat Belmont by a score of 3-2. Overall, Texas State is 9-1 this season.
Sophomore shortstop Ariel Ortiz continued to lead the Bobcats offensively as she finished the day going 5-for-7 including the go-ahead hit in the top of the seventh to put the Bobcats ahead of Belmont.
Game 1 – Abilene Christian
The two runs in the bottom of the first for Texas State proved to be the only runs scored throughout the remainder of the game. Kelli Baker led the game off by getting hit by a pitch and she ultimately scored when Corrina Liscano drew a walk with the bases loaded. Three of the first four batters for Texas State got on base by either a walk or a hit by pitch and Ortiz earned a hit to load the bases for Liscano.
A wild pitch three batters later resulted in the second run of the day for Texas State.
The Bobcats recorded hits in the third, fourth, and fifth innings, but struggled to get runners home for the rest of the contest.
Ortiz finished the game going a perfect 3-for-3 from the plate. Sara Rupp earned her first hit of the season in the bottom of the fourth inning to register the only other Bobcat hit of the game.
Randi Rupp earned her sixth victory of the season after pitching the complete game shutout. She struck out nine batters while allowing just two hits and no walks.
Game 2 – Belmont
Much like she has throughout the first nine games of the year, Baker reached base to lead off the top of the first inning for Texas State. She would come around to score when Ortiz tallied her fourth hit of the day, a double to right center, to make it 1-0 Bobcats.
Four scoreless innings passed for both teams before Belmont made a move in the bottom of the sixth. A walk to lead-off the inning by the Bruins resulted in the first run of the day after Belmont hit a double to right center. Another double just two batters later scored the second run to give Belmont a 2-1 lead over the Bobcats.
Kimberlin Naivar led off the top of the seventh inning with a single to left field and came around to score on a pinch hit double to left field by Taylor Webb two batters later. A drawn walk by Baker on the next at bat put runners on first and second for Ortiz with two outs. Ortiz proceed to notch her fifth hit of the day, second of the game, to score Webb and to put Texas State up 3-2.
Three up, three down in the bottom of the seventh inning by Belmont gave Texas State its ninth victory of the season.
Rupp came in relief for Paige Williams to earn the win and improve to 7-1 on the year. Williams allowed six hits and two earned runs with one strikeout. Rupp struck out three in two innings of work for Texas State.
Who Stood Out
Ariel Ortiz went 5-for-7 from the plate with two RBIs, a double, six total bases, and a .857 slugging percentage … she also was flawless on defense with five putouts and six assists … Randi Rupp earned two victories in 9.0 innings pitched with 12 strikeouts, no walks, and just three hits surrendered.
Up Next:
Texas State will conclude the Louisiana Tech Invitational tomorrow afternoon with a 12 p.m. game against Louisiana Tech.
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Troy Softball Splits on Day Two of Troy Classic
TROY, Alabama – The Troy softball team split a pair of games on Saturday night at the Troy Softball Complex on day two of the Troy Class. Troy defeated Tennessee Tech in five innings, 11-3, in the first game before falling to McNeese State, 3-2, in nine innings in the nightcap.
TROY 11, TENNESSEE TECH 3
Troy (6-2) started the game out red-hot offensively pushing six runs across the plate in the first inning. Senior Hannah Day homered over the left field wall scoring Amanda Winters who was on first after being hit by a pitch.
Senior Ashley Rainey followed Day's home run with an infield single and sophomore Carli Kayler doubled down the right-field line pushing Rainey to third. Freshman Stephanie Snyder contributed with a sacrifice fly to score Rainey to give Troy a 3-0 lead.
The Trojans scored three more runs in the inning as Kayler scored on a wild pitch and Tennessee Tech's Hannah Weaver walked in two.
Troy put two more on the board in the bottom of the second to extend its lead out to 8-2. The Trojans scored again in the fourth after senior Kate Benton singled, which pushed Erica Davis to third. Benton stole second on the next pitch and Davis came home on the throw.
The Trojans final runs came in the fifth inning when Kayler doubled to score Winters. Snyder came to the plate and singled through the left side to score Kayler enforcing the run rule in five innings.
The Golden Eagles scored single runs in the first and third innings on RBI singles by Aylsaa Richards and Sabrie Neeb, and a Cortney Fry solo homer in the fourth.
Freshman Peyton Glover (1-0) got her first win in the circle for the Trojans as she allowed three runs – two earned – on seven hits over five innings of work. Weaver (1-1) suffered the loss for the Golden Eagles after she allowed six runs on three hits in just two-thirds of an inning.
TROY 2, MCNEESE STATE 3
The Trojans (6-3) dropped a heartbreaker in nine innings to the McNeese State Cowgirls in the last game of the night.
McNeese struck first scoring one run in the second on a Hailey Drew single to left field to score Morgan Catron and then again in the top of the fifth on an Erika Piancastelli single to center to score Marisa Taunton; both run-scoring hits came with two outs.
Troy didn't have an answer until the bottom of the fifth when junior Becca Hartley hit a two-run homer to tie the game; the blast was Hartley's fifth of the season in just nine games. Kate Benton started the rally with a one-out bunt single back to the pitcher.
Neither team could score again until the top of the ninth inning when McNeese's Taylor Goree stole home putting the Cowgirls up 3-2. Troy had Kayler on third with one out in the bottom of the ninth, but a pair of strikeouts exhausted the Trojans chances in tying the game.
Rainey (4-4) took the hard-fought loss for the Trojans as she pitched all nine innings. She allowed three run – two earned – and struck out three.
Emily Vincent (2-0) tossed four scoreless innings out of the bullpen to pick up the win for the Cowgirls. She struck out four, walked one and didn't allow a hit.
The Trojans' final game of the Troy Classic is Sunday when they take on Tennessee Tech at 2:30 p.m.