Sanders, Cajuns Surge Past Bobcats in Series Opener
SAN MARCOS, Texas – DJ Sanders produced three home runs, highlighted by two grand slams in the nightcap, and 17th-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Softball extended its season-best winning streak to 15 games with an 8-1, 12-4 (6 inn.) sweep of Texas State on Good Friday at Bobcat Stadium.
The Ragin' Cajuns (32-5, 14-0 Sun Belt) captured the series victory from the Bobcats (30-10, 11-5 Sun Belt), extending the school and Sun Belt record for consecutive conference series won to 34 straight dating back to March 2013.
Improving to 14-0 in Sun Belt play, the squad joined the teams from 2001 (started 18-0) and 2004 (finished 18-0) as the only ones in program history to extend the undefeated league start past 12 games.
Louisiana and Texas State close out the Easter weekend series on Saturday with a single game slated for 2 p.m. at Bobcat Stadium.
Saturday's game can be heard in the Lafayette area on SportsRadio ESPN 1420-AM and worldwide on the RadioPup app. Links for a live video stream (fee applies) and live statistics, offered by Texas State, can be accessed at RaginCajuns.com on the softball schedule page.
Sanders' two grand slams in Game 2 increased her season total to six which ties the NCAA single-season record last reached by former Cajun Christi Orgeron in 2012. The junior shortstop has launched four grand slams in the last week alone: Apr. 8 vs. Troy (Game 2), Apr. 11 vs. SE Louisiana and Friday evening's production.
Both grand slams played a pivotal role in the Cajuns completing the sweep. The first broke a 1-1 tie in the second inning, while the second broke the game open in the fifth inning by extending Louisiana's lead to 10-2.
Sanders increased her nation-leading home run total to 23 which is tied with Orgeron and Holly Tankersley for fourth-most in a single-season in the Ragin' Cajuns record book. The eight RBI she picked up pushed her season total to 60 marking her new career-high total, surpassing the team-leading 58 she produced just last season.
Kelli Martinez was 3-for-3 at the plate and the trio of Aleah Craighton, Kara Gremillion and Corin Voinchè each tallied two hits in combining with Sanders to produce the bulk of the 14-hit attack off of Bobcats pitching.
Haley Hayden was the catalyst in the opening game of the twinbill. She was 3-for-3 at the plate with three runs scored and four RBI as the Ragin' Cajuns pushed across the most runs off of Texas State starting pitcher Randi Rupp this season.
Hayden got the Cajuns off to a quick start with a two-run homer in the first inning and later doubled home two runs in the fourth inning to stretch the lead to 6-1.
The last run Hayden scored, when Craighton followed her fourth-inning double with a single down the right field line, increased her career total to 231 which moved her past Jerie Alexander (230 from 1999-2002) for second place on the career runs scored list.
Alyssa Denham delivered a masterful relief performance after taking over for Alex Stewart, who was experiencing illegal pitch issues, in the first inning.
Denham recorded the final two outs of the first inning after an Ariel Ortiz RBI single trimmed the Cajuns lead to 2-1 - the first of 13 straight Bobcats hitters she would retire through two outs in the fifth inning. She was commanding in the circle, retiring 17 of the first 19 batters she faced after beginning her relief appearance, struck out five and would allow only two hits (both in seventh inning).
Louisiana reached at least six runs for the fifth straight game and 12th time in 14 Sun Belt contests. The nation's leader in scoring offense, the Ragin' Cajuns have reached six runs 28 times in 37 games, overall, and are undefeated (28-0) when hitting the mark.
The Ragin' Cajuns increased their all-time series lead over Texas State to 29-3 and extended their series win streak to nine games. Making just the second visit ever to San Marcos, Louisiana improved to 4-1 against Texas State at Bobcat Stadium.
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SB: Walk-Off HR's Lift UTA To Sweep Of Jags
ARLINGTON, Texas - It was a pair of walk-off home runs that helped UTA sweep a doubleheader on Friday against South Alabama at Allan Saxe Field.
Reagan Wright and Shelbi Sikes were the heroes on the day in helping UTA top the Jaguars for the first time after dropping the first nine meetings all-time. Wright needed just one pitch in Game 1 to lift the Mavs to a 5-4 win, Sikes knocked a no-doubter in Game 2 in the eighth to take the game 7-6.
"I’m really proud of them," UTA coach Kristie Fox. "It's not so much about the doubleheader as it is about their fight and stepping up to the plate every time they were challenged and handling the pressure and adversity really well. They did a great job of staying composed, competing every pitch and controlling the things that they could control. So I’m proud that they were able to do it for all 15 innings and stay focused."
Whitney Walton crossed the dish two times in Game 1 to tie for 10th in single-season scoring, as she has 33 runs scored.
The Mavs improved to 22-19 overall and 8-9 in the Sun Belt, while South Alabama went to 24-17 and 6-12 in league play.
Wright swung a hot bat all evening as she tallied four hits for the day's team high. Wright's night was highlighted by the walk-off homer and a triple later in Game 2. Sikes finished with a trio of hits, a RBI in each game and the winning run of the finale.
"It was awesome," Wright said. "I wasn’t really expecting it, I just knew I needed to get on base and when I saw it went over, everybody went wild, it was great."
The teams meet on Saturday at 12 p.m. to conclude the three-game series.
UTA got on the board in Game 1 with a quick start in the first. The rally came on two outs as Whitney Walton and Aileen Garcia each notched singles to open play.
The teams exchanged three runs in the third as UTA held a 4-3 lead going into the seventh. South Alabama tied things up in the top half before Wright took the first pitch onto the berm beyond the left-field wall.
The Jags and Mavs tried to match each other through out the second game as UTA answered each punch from South Alabama. It was a two-out rally that tied things in the bottom of the second with Mallory Foster charging in on a wild pitch.
The teams put up a run in the fourth and South Alabama jumped into the lead in the fifth with a pair before UTA exploded for a four-spot in the fifth. The Mavs used five hits that included a double from Sandra Mendoza and a two-RBI single off the right-field line to plate another pair. Wright concluded scoring with her single to center on two outs that brought across two more.
Clakley entered for the Mavs in the sixth looking to notch her first save of the season, however, South Alabama responded with two runs, including a hit batter with the bases loaded on two outs to tie the game.
Seven combined outs would bring up Sikes, who sent a no-doubter over the right side of the field, despite the wind blowing in.
"It’s a great feeling," Sikes said. "It has to be one of the best feelings in the game, especially for our program because we haven’t really taken one from South Alabama yet and today we took two on two walk-offs so that's pretty huge."
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Warhawks Take Two from Troy on Friday
Troy, Ala. - The ULM softball team used timely offense on Friday to take down Troy in both games of the doubleheader, taking game one by a 3-1 score in extra innings before a 2-1 victory in the second game of the day. The Warhawks will now look for a Sun Belt series sweep for the second weekend in a row after taking down Appalachian State last weekend at home.
TURNING POINT
-Tied 1-1 in extra innings in the opener, Jayden Mount connected on a two-run homer in the top of the ninth on a 2-2 pitch that proved to be the difference.
-The second game saw Jessie Watts deliver an RBI single in the top of the seventh inning that plated Sydney McKay as ULM closed the game out in the bottom of the seventh.
NOTABLES
-In game one, the Warhawks were led by Mount’s two hits, including the big home run. Melanie Coyne, Cheyanne Lyon, Hunter Hogan and Samantha Agamaite (RBI) each added a hit apiece in the extra inning win.
-Melanie Coyne went the distance in the win, tossing all nine innings and giving up just two hits and one earned run while striking out seven Trojans.
-ULM took the lead in the top of the sixth on Agamaite’s RBI single back up the middle before Troy used a walk and an RBI double in the bottom of the seventh to send the game to extra innings.
-In game two, Coyne paced the ULM offense with three hits and the lone RBI in the win, while Sydney McKay and Watts added two hits apiece. Mount, Agamaite and Shaw each had a hit apiece in win.
-Paige Porter started in the circle for the Warhawks and scattered eight hits and struck out five batters over the first 4 1/3 innings, while Watts earned the win after tossing the last 1 2/3 innings, giving up one hit while striking out two Trojan batters.
-Coyne’s bunt single gave ULM the lead in the top of the third before Troy tied the game with an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth. Faced with going to extra innings again, Watts pushed the Warhawks ahead in the top of the seventh, driving in McKay, who doubled with two outs to set up the Watts hit.
UP NEXT
-The Warhawks and Troy meet on Saturday in the series finale with first pitch slated for 2:00 p.m.
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Softball Sweeps Doubleheader with Appalachian State
BOONE, NC - The Georgia Southern softball team swept Appalachian State in a doubleheader on Friday evening, improving to 20-19 overall, 9-7 in Sun Belt conference play.
The Eagles won game one 2-0 behind a two-run homerun from senior Emily Snider and a one-hit shutout from sophomore pitcher Dixie Raley. GS dominated the Mountaineers in game two, scoring 10 runs, including a fifth inning grand slam from Andrea McKenzie along with a strong performance from pitcher Kierra Camp to win 10-1.
GAME ONE: GS 2, APP 0 (8 innings)
Dixie Raley and Kenzie Longanecker competed in quite the pitcher's duel in game one, keeping both offenses scoreless through seven innings. Emily Snider knocked a two-run homerun in the eighth inning to break the Eagles scoring drought and score just enough to give GS the game one win.
Dixie Raley (W, 11-13) had a stellar performance on the mound for the Eagles, throwing a one hit shutout throughout eight innings of play. The sophomore struck out four Mountaineers and recorded her fifth shutout of the season.
At the plate, the Eagles had five hits in game one. Snider led the way with two hits while Mekhia Freeman, Shelby Wilson, and Andrea McKenzie each recorded one.
GAME 2: GS 10, APP 1
The Eagles scored early in game two, pushing a run across in the first after an RBI-single from Emily Snider. The senior kept her hot bat in the third inning, knocking her second homerun of the day over the left field wall, her tenth of the season.
Andrea McKenzie scored in the fourth after Lydia Witkowski knocked a double to the wall and Mekhia Freeman hit a sacrifice fly, bringing the score to 3-0. Andrea McKenzie stepped up in the fifth with bases loaded and knocked a grand slam, her second homerun of the season, bringing the score to 7-0.
The Eagles tacked on another three runs in the fifth, bringing the inning total to seven and bringing the run rule into effect.
Kierra Camp went the distance for the Eagles, throwing the second impressive pitching performance of the day. The junior threw all five innings and only allowed three hits, striking out three.
UP NEXT:
The two teams will wrap up the series with the rubber game on Saturday starting at 1 p.m. ET.
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Coastal Carolina and Georgia State Split a Double Header
CONWAY - The Coastal Carolina softball team split a double header, losing game one 8-1 and picking up the victory in game two 8-2, in Conway, Friday afternoon. The series started a day earlier due to the Easter holiday.
With the split the Chanticleers go to 29-14, 7-9 in Sun Belt action and GSU moves to 27-16, and 12-5 in conference.
GAME 1: Georgia State 8, CCU 1
The Panthers started the scoring in the top of the second inning on Kensey Caldwell's double. Caldwell moved to third on a sacrifice bunt, before being pushed across the plate on a ground ball to Angela Buccilli for the second out.
Coastal was able to answer back on a two-out Kassidy Smith solo homerun, knotting the game at 1-1.
Georgia State took a two run lead in the sixth off a Chanticleer miscue allowing for Megan Litumbe to hit a two run homerun for the 3-1 lead.
The Chants had two more errors allowing five runs in the top of the seventh, highlighted by Litumbe's second homerun of the game and promptly followed up by Caldwell hitting a solo shot.
CCU was only able to get a single runner on in the home portion of the frame via a two-out walk before the Panthers enticed the game ending grounder.
Taylor Rahach (eight hits, eight runs, two earned) suffered the loss dropping her record to 12-4 on the season and Kinsley Jennings picked up the victory to improve to 13-7.
GAME 2: CCU 8, Georgia State 2
The Chanticleers started off on shaky ground, but worked out of a two out bases loaded jam, on an Ashley Guillette (11-6 on season) strikeout.
Taty Forbes led off the home portion of the third inning getting hit by a pitch, and quickly advanced to second on a steal. Adrianna Toro moved Forbes to third on a sacrifice bunt. Kailey Mellen stepped into the box and hit a line drive up the middle to center scoring Forbes for the 1-0 lead. Timi Tooley followed with a soft grounder that was just out of the reach of the GSU pitcher to move Mellen to second. Smith got her second rbi on the day by doubling to right center moving Tooley to third and scoring Mellen. The Panthers changed pitchers hoping to stop the damage. Alexis Alvino laid down a squeeze bunt, making it to first when GSU tried to get the tag at home. Runners on the corner Chelsea D'Avilar hit a deep fly to left allowing Smith to score after moving to third on the squeeze play. Coastal Carolina led 4-0 at the end of the third.
The Chants capitalized on a Georgia State miscue to plate two runs in the fourth. Mellen singled up the middle allowing Buccilli, reached by a walk earlier, to score. Forbes who reached on the error scored on a Tooley ground-out to first, to lead 6-0.
The Panthers got a run back in the top of the fifth after a CCU error.
Coastal answered back with two runs for 8-1 lead in the home portion of the fifth. Alvino started off the inning with a double to right field, and scoring on a Forbes single moving Buccilli, second walk of the game, to third. Toro followed with a double down the left field line to score Buccilli and moving Forbes to third.
Georgia State closed out the scoring in the top of the sixth getting a run off a second Chanticleer miscue. Devin Wallace got a call third strike to close out the inning, with the bases full of Panthers.
The decisive third final game of the series will take place Saturday, (April 15), first pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m., in Conway.
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SOFTBALL SPLITS FRIDAY DOUBLEHEADER WITH COASTAL CAROLINA
CONWAY, S.C. - Georgia State (27-16, 12-4 SBC) split a conference doubleheader with Coastal Carolina (29-14, 7-9 Sun Belt) on Friday afternoon. The Panthers took Game 1 of the series 8-1, before the Chanticleers came back and took Game 2 8-2.
Megan Litumbe was the story of the day for the Panthers, as she belted two home runs in Game 1 to move ahead of teammate Ivie Drake for the most home runs in school history.
Game 1: Georgia State 8, Coastal Carolina 1
Megan Litumbe hit two home runs and Kensey Caldwell hit another as Georgia State earned an 8-1 win over Coastal Carolina in Game 1.
For Litumbe, it was the 42nd and 43rd home runs of her career, moving her ahead of Ivie Drake for the most career home runs in program history.
Junior Kinsley Jennings went 6.0 innings, allowing just four hits and one earned run for the Panthers. She finished the game striking out six to improve to 13-7 and lower her ERA to 2.03.
The Panthers got on the board first with a run in the top of the second as Caldwell scored after a ground out by Kirsten McMonigle.
Coastal tied the game in the bottom of the fourth on a home run from Kassidy Smith, but that would be the lone run the Chanticleers would get across the plate.
Litumbe’s first home run of the game came in the top of the sixth as she hit a two-run dinger to put GSU ahead 3-1.
The Panthers would add five more in the top of the seventh, including another two-run shot from Litumbe and Caldwell’s solo shot. The duo each finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored.
Game 2: Coastal Carolina 8, Georgia State 2
Coastal Carolina earned an 8-2 Game 2 win over Georgia State, getting its offense started with a big third inning.
The Chanticleers got on the board first with four runs, all with one out, in the bottom of the third. The four runs chased Mandy Chance after just 2.1 innings. Chance would earn the loss and fall to 6-5. She was one of four Georgia State pitchers used in the second game of the day.
The Chanticleers added two more in the bottom of the fourth before the Panthers got on the board with a McMonigle groundout in the top of the fifth to make the score 6-1.
Coastal Carolina added two more in the bottom of the fifth to make it 8-1. The Panthers would score one more in the top of the sixth on an Arden Jobe sac fly, scoring Taylor Chadwick, but that is as close as GSU would get.
Ashley Guillette (11-6) pitched a strong second game for Coastal Carolina, going 5.2 innings, allowing just four hits and one earned run.
The Panthers managed seven walks in the game, but unfortunately left 12 runners on base.
Georgia State will look for the series win on Saturday. First pitch from Conway, S.C., is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Follow along with Georgia State on Twitter (@GSU_Softball) for the latest news.
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Bobcats Drop Doubleheader To No. 17/18 Louisiana
SAN MARCOS, Texas – Ariel Ortiz tied the Texas State single-season home run record with her 13th, but it was DJ Sanders' three homers, including two grand slams, that lifted No. 17/18 Louisiana to a pair of victories against the Bobcats on Good Friday.
The Ragin' Cajuns took game one 8-1 and game two 12-4 in front of 1,013 fans, which ranks as the third-largest attendance in Bobcat Softball Stadium history.
Texas State is now 30-10 on the season and 11-5 in Sun Belt play, while Louisiana improves to 32-8 overall and 14-0 against league foes.
Game One Recap
No 17/18 Louisiana pounded out 10 hits, including two-run homers by Haley Hayden and DJ Sanders, en route to an 8-1-win over Texas State in the first game of the Good Friday doubleheader.
Four of Louisiana's 10 hits went for extra bases as seven different Ragin' Cajuns counted base knocks. Haley Hayden led the Louisiana charge with a 3-for-3 day with four RBI and three runs scored.
Alex Stewart started in the circle for Louisiana and surrendered a hit and the Bobcats' run in her third of an inning before giving way to Alyssa Denham out of the bullpen. Denham, who earned the win to improve to 13-1 on the season, worked the final 6.2 innings and limited the Bobcats to two hits, while striking out five.
Randi Rupp suffered the loss to fall to 20-6 overall. The junior pitched the complete game, surrendering all eight Ragin Cajun runs (six earned) despite notching seven strikeouts.
Louisiana took a 2-0 lead two batters into the game as Hayden homered to dead center. Kara Gremillion led off the game with a single to short and four pitches after a dropped foul extended Hayden's at-bat, the senior hit her eighth round-tripper of the season.
Texas State answered with a run in the home half of the first, halving the Ragin' Cajuns' lead. Christiana McDowell drew a one-out walk and advanced to second on an illegal pitch. Ariel Ortiz immediately followed with single back up the middle, scoring McDowell for her 43rd RBI of the season.
The Ragin' Cajuns reestablished a two-run lead off the bat of Sanders in the third. Sanders turned on Rupp's 2-1 offering and sent the pitch over the left-field wall for Louisiana's second two-run blast of the game.
An inning later the visitors put the game out of reach with a three-run frame for a 7-1 lead. Back-to-back infield singles with one out were followed by Gremillion's two-RBI double to the wall in right center. Aleah Craighton then singled home Gremillion for the Ragin'
Craighton drove home Gremillion with a sac fly to left for Louisiana's eighth and final run in the sixth inning.
Game Two Recap
Louisiana's DJ Sanders hit two grand slams as the No. 17/18 Bobcats won game two 12-4 in six innings.
Sanders finished the game 2-for-4 with eight RBI as the Ragin' Cajuns totaled 14 hits.
Texas State collected seven hits in the contest as seven different Bobcats recorded hits.
Ariel Ortiz put the Bobcats on scoreboard with a solo shot in the bottom of the first. The junior sent Louisiana's Alex Stewart's 1-0 pitch out to left for her 13th dinger of the season and 31st of her career. Ortiz, who holds the TXST career home run record, now co-owns the Bobcat single-season mark at 13 with Ryan Stukel's 2003 campaign.
Louisiana answered with a six-run second to take a 6-1 lead. The Ragin' Cajuns loaded the bases with one out, then used an infield single by Kara Gremillion to knot the game 1-1 and keep the bases full. Three pitches later Sanders cleared the bases with a grand slam to left center. Hayley Hayden followed with a walk and later scored on Aleah Craighton's double to center, providing the 6-1 Ragin' Cajun advantage.
Texas State scratched its second run across in the fourth as Kennedy Cline singled up the middle to drive home Jaelyn Young and cut the Louisiana led to 6-2.
Louisiana responded to score five runs in the fifth, pushing its lead to 11-2. Sanders counted four RBI in the inning as she hit her second grand slam of the game and NCAA record-tying sixth of the season. Daniella Chaves accounted for the fifth RBI of the frame on her single through the left side that scored Craighton.
The Bobcats then scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth as Webb doubled home Kimberlin Naivar and Christiana McDowell, trimming the Louisiana lead to 11-4.
Louisiana provided the 12-4 final with a run in the sixth as Kelli Martinez touched home on a sac fly by Hayden.
Stewart threw six complete to earn her 15th win of the season. She struck out five and surrendered all four of the TXST runs.
Jodi Paige Williams (5-3) was saddled with the loss, throwing 4.1 innings with two strikeouts and 12 hits allowed. Krista Jacobs worked the final five outs.
UP NEXT
Texas State and Louisiana conclude the three-game series with a single game Saturday (April 14) at 2 p.m.
FOLLOW THE BOBCATS
For all of the latest news and information on Bobcat softball, visit TXSTATEBOBCATS.com. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/TXStateSoftball along on Twitter (@TXStateSoftball) and Instagram (@TXStateSoftball).
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JAGUAR SOFTBALL DROPS TWO LATE-INNING HEARTBREAKERS AT TEXAS-ARLINGTON
ARLINGTON, Texas – The University of South Alabama softball team dropped a pair of late-inning heartbreakers Saturday evening to Texas-Arlington as the Mavericks picked up a pair of walk-off wins, defeating the Jaguars 5-4 in the opener and 7-6 in eight innings in the nightcap at Allan Saxe Field.
"We were disappointed in the first game because of the mistakes we made defensively, and we needed to clean those up in game two," South Alabama head coach Becky Clark said. "We talked about those in between games and I thought we did clean that up in game two. I was proud of our players for how they went after that game and played hard. Chandler [Sparkman] did a great job and gave us a chance to win. She made some good pitches in some places and jammed [UTA] and they hit some jam shots that landed in no man's land. That was just one of those games that didn't work out in our favor.
"We've been going through some adversity and we're having to work through some things, but we know we will come out on the other side of this; I'm confident of that part. We recruit character and character has to work through these types of things. You can't get frustrated or down on yourself; you just have to keep going and know it's going to turnaround."
South Alabama (24-17, 6-12 SBC) will close out the series on Sunday with first pitch scheduled for 12 p.m.
GAME ONE: TEXAS-ARLINGTON 5, SOUTH ALABAMA 4
South Alabama tied the game up in the top half of the seventh, but Reagan Wright's walk-off home run in the home half gave Texas-Arlington (22-19, 8-9 SBC) a 5-4 win over the Jags in the opener of the doubleheader.
Kaleigh Todd and Kristian Foster each recorded two hits for the Jaguars, while the latter also drove in two runs. Abby Krzywiecki had two RBI in her pinch-hit plate appearance.
Destin Vicknair (10-9) took the loss as she allowed five runs – two earned – on eight hits, while walking four and striking out just one.
Wright was 2-for-3 at the plate with a run scored and two RBI of her own, while Shelbi Sikes was 2-for-2 with a RBI. Aileen Garcia also had two hits in her four at-bats with a RBI. Whitney Walton reached in three of her four plate appearances, recording a hit and a pair of walks.
Sam Clakley improved to 16-10 on the spring with the complete-game win. In her seven innings, Clakley allowed four runs – th
The Mavs took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first as Garcia lined a 1-2 pitch to the gap in left center for a single to, scoring Walton all the way from first. Walton had reached a two-out infield single as she beat Kristian Foster's throw to first to keep the inning alive.
The Jags took a 3-1 lead in the third with three runs on four hits. Savanna Mayo began the inning with a walk and then moved to third when Katleyn Gruich laced a double to the right-center gap. USA loaded the bases two batters later on Todd's bunt single. Krzywiecki – pinch hitting for Nichols then lined a single to center, plating Mayo and Gruich. Foster followed with a RBI single to center of her won, scoring Nichols – who had reentered – and giving the Jaguars the two-run advantage.
UTA reclaimed the lead in its half of the third, scoring three runs on three hits and two costly errors. Walton walked with one out in the frame and Garcia reached on a single that had initially been ruled as an error. The two Mav base runners moved up 60 feet on a ground out and loaded the bases after a Lauren Curry was hit by a pitch. Wright then singled back up the middle to score Walton and Melanie Mendoza also came into score after a throwing error, tying the game at 3-3. Sikes then brought in Curry when she singled down the left field line to give UTA the lead (4-3).
South Alabama rallied late to tie the contests with a two-out RBI single from Foster. Gruich was hit by a pitch to ignite the rally. With two outs in the inning, Clakley looked as she were going to get out of it and end the game as Nichols hit a bouncer back to her, but she was unable to field it cleanly, allowing Nichols to reach and keep the inning alive. Foster then capitalized as she lined a single to right to bring home pinch runner Marissa Landrum and tied the game up at 4-4.
The Jags didn't hold the momentum long as Wright lifted a walk-off home run on first pitch she saw from Vicknair over the wall in left to give Texas-Arlington the one-run victory.
GAME TWO: TEXAS-ARLINGTON 7, SOUTH ALABAMA 6 (8 innings)
South Alabama tied the game up again in the top of the seventh, but like in the opener, Texas-Arlington would get a walk-off home run to pick up the 7-6 win in extra innings.
Amanda Minahan was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with two runs scored and two RBI in the loss, as six other Jaguars also recorded a hit. Foster, Mayo and Aly Smith also drove in a run.
Chandler Sparkman (1-2) went 7.1 innings in the circle for South Alabama, allowing seven runs – all earned – on 10 hits with five strikeouts and two walks.
Clakley (17-10) – who picked up the win in the opener – earned the win in relief in the game two. In her three innings of work, she allowed two runs on two hits. Sam Montes started the game and went five innings where she surrendered four runs on seven hits.
Wright (2-for-4) drove in three for the Mavericks, while Krista Rude also had two hits in her three plate appearances. Garcia also drove in a pair of runs. All but one of the nine UTA starters recorded at least one hit.
After going in order their first time up, South Alabama strung together two hits and a walk to get on the board first. Minahan singled to left to begin the frame and Haleigh Lane worked a five-pitch walk to put runners at first and second. After a nice defensive play by Walton at short to get Mayo at third and a fly out, Smith delivered the big hit as she lined a single to center to score Lane all the way from second.
UTA got the run back and tied the game up in the home half of the second. Mallory Foster doubled off the wall in center with one out and was then sacrificed around to third. The Mav right fielder then came home to tie the contest up at 1-1 on a wild pitch by Sparkman.
The Jaguars got the run back and retook the lead two innings later. South loaded the bases in the fourth on back-to-back hits by Minahan and Lane and a walk from Gruich. With Mayo at the plate, USA went up 2-1 when Minahan scored on a wild pitch from Montes.
The lead didn't last long as the Mavericks tied the game back up at 2-2 in the bottom half on Wright's two-out RBI triple to right, scoring Curry – who had reached on a fielder's choice.
Minahan broke the tie in the top half of the fifth as she blasted her eighth HR of the season over the left-center field wall. The two-run shot was the 25th homer of her career, tying her for third on the program's career chart with Brittany Fowler (2010-13).
UTA answers back the next half inning with four runs on five hits to retake the lead at 6-4, with all four of the Mavericks' runs coming with two outs in the inning. Kacey Everett singled to right center and Sandra Mendoza doubled to the gap in left center to put runners in scoring position. Sparkman retired the next two UTA batters and nearly escaped unscathed, but Garcia's flare to right dropped just inside the foul line, plating Everett and Mendoza and tying the game at 4-4. After a wild pitch, Foster was intentionally walked, and Curry then beat out an infield single to load the bases. Wright delivered another big hit for the Mavs one batter latter as she singled to center plating two more runs and giving Texas-Arlington the 6-4 advantage.
Down two in its final at-bat in regulation, South Alabama had another late rally. Megan Harris singled off Clakley's glove to spark the rally and Todd then reached on a fielder's choice. The Jag duo was sacrificed over by Nichols and Foster again came up big as she singled to center, scoring Harris. Minahan then walked to load the bases and Gruich was hit by a pitch to plate USA's second run of the inning and tie the game at 6-6.
USA had a chance to retake the lead with the bases still loaded, but Clakley was able to get Mayo to fly out to right to end the inning.
With one out in the eighth, Sikes swung at the first pitch she saw from Sparkman and homered to right to end the game.
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App State Drops a Pair to Georgia Southern
BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State University softball slipped to former SoCon rival Georgia Southern in a Sun Belt Conference doubleheader on Friday at the Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium in Boone. Game one went into extra innings, and the Eagles finished out on top, 2-0, and GS snagged game two 10-1, thanks to a seven-run fifth inning.
The Mountaineers (12-26, 0-14 SBC) were held to four hits on the day with Sidney Russell going 2-for-6 crashing out App State’s only connection in the first game and making another in the nightcap.
Three Mountaineers made appearances in the circle on Friday, and Kenzie Longanecker fired out five strikeouts, which raises her season total to 97 and puts her tied with Meredith O’Connor (2005) at No. 7 on the single-season strikeouts list.
Game One: Georgia Southern 2 , App State 0 (8 innings)
After a pitcher’s duel dominated regulation only allowing a total of four hits, the scoreboard finally changed from nil-nil in the eighth.
At the top half, Georgia Southern (20-19, 10-7 SBC) opened with a ground out to second but followed reaching first on an error. With the stage set with one out and one on base, Emily Snider stepped up the plate and cleared the bases hitting a two-run homer to take the 2-0 lead.
In the bottom half, the Apps couldn’t strike up any offensive momentum and went down in order to end the ballgame.
Russell cranked out her sixth double of the season and Longanecker (8-10) pitched her sixth complete game with five hits, two runs (one earned), three walks and five strikeouts.
Game Two: Georgia Southern 10, App State 1 (5 innings)
Georgia Southern’s huge seven-run fifth inning put game two out of reach for the Mountaineers as the Eagles snagged the doubleheader sweep, 10-1.
GS hopped onto the boards early scoring one run off a RBI single and tacked on two more to end the fourth up by three runs.
In the fifth inning, Georgia Southern exploded out to a 10-0 lead adding four off a grand slam and kept the scoring stream going with two consecutive RBI singles and a sacrifice fly.
The Apps tried to respond in the bottom half, but the Eagles limited the Mountaineers to one run off Russell’s RBI single and Georgia Southern snatched the victory in five innings.
Vanessa Ciocatto (1-9) started in the circle for the Mountaineers and struck out one Eagle in 4.1 innings, and Claire Eosso came in relief, making her fourth appearance of the season, hurling out one strikeout in 0.2 innings.
Up Next
App State softball will wrap up conference action with Georgia Southern tomorrow, April 15 at 1 p.m. at the Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium in Boone.
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ULM Defeats Troy in Two Close Games
TROY, Alabama – The Troy softball team faced ULM in a doubleheader on Friday and fell to the Warhawks late in both games. The Trojans move to 16-27 overall and 4-14 in the conference.
Game one: Troy 1, ULM 3
Strong defensive efforts from both sides brought game one into extras. After six scoreless innings, ULM brought a run across the plate with an RBI single up the middle from Samantha Agamaite to give the Warhawks a 1-0 lead.
Troy answered back woth their first run of the night in the bottom of the seventh inning. With one out, Grace Mirly walked to put the tying run on base for the Trojans. Freshman Logan Calhoun stepped into the box and barreled a double to score Mirly from first to tie the game.
A two run homer from ULM short stop Jayden Mount in the top of the ninth gave the Warhawks a 3-1 lead that the Trojans could not respond to.
At the plate, Calhoun and Becca Hartley put up Troy's only two hit on the board. Hartley led the game off with a triple to right center field, but was not able to cross the plate to take an early lead.
In the circle for the Trojans, Claire Graves earned her 18th start and pitched her seventh complete game of the season. Unfortunately, she took the loss to move to 7-7 on the season.
Game two: Troy 1, ULM 2
Another one run game plagued Troy as the Trojans were able to post 10 hits, but could only bring in one run. ULM took another early lead as a bunt single from Melanie Coyne scored Sydney McKay from third.
Stephanie Snyder got a base hit in the fifth and a 13 pitch rally from Madeline Porter paid off as the sophomore singled to left center to allow Snyder to get across the plate to tie the game at 1-1.
ULM took home the win as they added another run in the seventh inning to take a one run lead. Troy rallied late, but it's campaign came to an end as a long fly ball ended the game.
The Trojans posted one triple and three doubles to rack up 10 total hits, but they stranded 11 runners on base.
Katie Webb went 1-for-3 at the plate and scored Troy's lone run in the game. Rachel Rigney Brown got the start in the circle and threw a complete game. The loss moves her to 6-14 on the year.
NOTEWORTHY
• Troy added four more doubles in the two games to it's conference high 51. Becca Hartley and Stephanie Snyder still lead the team with nine doubles each.
• 12 of Troy's 27 losses have come within just one run.
• Hartley remains the team leader in batting average (.338), slugging percentage (.762), on base percentage (.466), runs (36), hits (44), RBIs (35), triples (2), and home runs (14). She is two home runs shy of tying Hannah Day's third place single season record with 16 homers that she hit in 2016.
• Maddie Porter took her 14th hit by pitch in game one. She leads the conference and is 30th nationally in hit by pitches.
• Stephanie Snyder now has 13 multiple hit games this season after getting two hits in game two of the doubleheader, a career and team high.
UP NEXT
Troy will close out the series with ULM on Saturday at 2 p.m. All youth softball players are invited to join the Trojans on the field for the National Anthem. Players are encouraged to wear their jerseys to the game. Meet behind the first baseline dugout to gather before going onto the field with the team. The Troy Softball program will also hold its annual Easter egg hunt for all children. Following the conclusion of the game, children are asked to meet behind the first base dugout in order to participate.