MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama softball team scored seven unanswered runs over its final two at-bats Sunday afternoon to rally back and complete the series sweep with a 7-2 victory over Georgia Southern at Jaguar Field.
South Alabama (31-18, 13-12 SBC) will close out the regular season at in-state Sun Belt rival Troy with a doubleheader on Sunday, May 7 with game times set for 1 and 3 p.m. at Trojan Field. With the win, the Jaguars moved into fourth place in the Sun Belt standings.
Prior to the game, South honored its two seniors – Amanda Minahan and Destin Vicknair.
"I thought we started out kind of slow today, but then we figured it out, strung some things together and got it going," South Alabama head coach Becky Clark said. "MC [Nichols] coming in off the bench and getting that big inning going was huge for us. Like yesterday, we had people come in off the bench and contribute. We also had a lot of kids have some great at-bats and do a good job at the plate. Haleigh [Lowe] had a great weekend for us and it was good to see her get things going. There was just a lot of good stuff for us all the way around."
Celebrating 21st birthday on Sunday, junior leftfielder Haleigh Lowe was a perfect-3-for-3 at the plate with a walk and two runs scored. The multi-hit performance was her eighth of the season. The outstanding day at the plate capped off an outstanding weekend for Lowe as she finished 7-for-9 in the series (.778) with four runs scored, while reaching base in nine of her 10 plate appearances.
Kaleigh Todd was 2-for-5 on the afternoon with a run scored, while six other Jags – Kristian Foster, Minahan, Dayla Gulledge, Savanna Mayo, Morgan Lutticken and MC Nichols – also recorded at least one hit. Mayo and Katelyn Gruich drove in two runs for USA, while Foster, Minahan and Lutticken also registered a RBI.
Devin Brown (16-6) picked up her second complete-game win of the series and didn't surrender an earned run in her seven innings in the circle on Sunday or in the series. Her two unearned runs allowed came in the third inning and she gave up just five hits, while striking out four.
Georgia Southern fell to 24-25 on the spring and 12-12 in the Sun Belt with the loss. Andrea McKenzie recorded two of the Eagles' five hits on the day.
Dixie Raley took the loss and dropped to 13-17 on the year, allowing six runs – three earned – on nine hits, while walking three and striking out five. Kierra Camp entered the game in the sixth and in her third of an inning of work, she allowed an unearned run on two hits.
USA had an excellent scoring opportunity in the top of the first with runners at second and third and only one out, but Raley was able to work out of the jam as she got Minahan to pop out to first and Gruich to strike out swinging.
The missed opportunity would come back to bite the Jags in the third as the Eagles got a pair of unearned runs to take a 2-0 lead. India Davis lined a one-out single to left that was misplayed by Lowe for a two-base error allowing Davis to race around to third. The GS second baseman came one batter later as Lydia Witkowski grounded out to short. USA and Brown looked as if they might get out of the inning when Mekhia Freeman hit a grounder to Todd at second, but it went off her glove for South's second error of the inning. The Eagles capitalized on the miscue as Emily Snider doubled to the gap in left center to score Freeman to give Georgia Southern the two-run lead.
After giving up a lead-off double McKenzie to begin the fifth, the Eagles looked like they might add to their lead. McKenzie was sacrificed over to third by Davis, but that was as close as she would get as Brown was able to get Witkowski to fly out to right and Freeman to ground out the second to end the inning.
The Jaguars took advantage of the missed opportunity and a GS error plating a pair of unearned runs and tie the contest back up . Lowe lined a one-out single to left to ignite the offense and then moved to second on Foster's base-hit. Raley induced a ground ball from Minahan one batter later and looked as if she were going to get out number two at third, but Shelby Wilson dropped the ball, allowing Lowe to reach third and loading the bases for South.
USA then scored its first unearned run of the inning when Gruich was hit by a pitch, bringing in Lowe. With two outs in the inning and the bases still loaded, Mayo worked the count full and drew a walk to score Foster and make it 2-2.
In the next half inning, Wilson lined a two-out double off the base of the wall in left, but Brown again came up big as she got Alesha Mann swinging to end the frame and keep the game all square at two.
Like in the series opener, South used a big inning in the bottom half of the sixth to break the close game open; recording five runs on five hits and sending 11 batters to the plate. Nichols bounced a pinch-hit single back up the middle to get things started for the Jags. Todd and Lowe then loaded the bases for the second-straight inning with a bunt-single and a walk. The first run of the inning came on the very next batter as Foster hit a sacrifice fly to shallow left that wasn't fielded cleanly by Witkowski, scoring Nichols and giving USA the 3-2 lead.
Minahan followed with a RBI-single to center scoring Todd and Gruich then reached on a fielding error by Mann at short – the third of the game by Georgia Southern – to plate Lowe. After a ground out, Mayo kept things going as she singled through the left side of the infield scoring Minahan who had stolen second to give the Jags a four-run advantage. South recorded its fifth and final run of the inning one batter latter on Lutticken's single to center.
Brown would allow a one-out double to McKenzie in the seventh, but nothing else as she got a fly out to left and a ground out to first by Witkowski for the final out of the game.
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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Seniors Lead the Way in Regular Season Home Finale
LAFAYETTE – 16th-ranked Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Softball closed out the home portion of the 2017 schedule on Sunday with an 8-0 (5 inn.) win over Coastal Carolina at Lamson Park.
The Ragin' Cajuns (39-6, 20-1 Sun Belt), who entered the day with the series win after 9-0 and 13-4 wins in five innings on Saturday, completed the series sweep of the Chanticleers (29-22, 7-16) in the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
Senior Alex Stewart (20-3, 1.92 ERA) struck out a season-high 10 batters in her final regular season game at Lamson Park. She faced only one batter over the minimum and used 66 pitches to record the five-inning shutout, her second shutout of the weekend.
Fellow senior Corin Voinchè paced the offense with a career-high four RBI as part of a 2-for-3 performance in her final regular season home contest. Voinchè broke the game open in the first inning with a bases-clearing double that increased the Ragin' Cajuns lead to 4-0.
Senior right fielder Haley Hayden took hold of sole possession of the program's career runs scored record when she crossed home plate on Voinchè's double. Hayden recorded her 244th career run, which surpassed the 243 scored by Nerissa Myers from 2010-13.
Louisiana, champions of the Sun Belt Conference for the fourth straight season and 15th time in 17 season of league play, close out the regular season Saturday-Sunday, May 6-7 on the road at ULM. The Ragin' Cajuns and Warhawks are scheduled to play a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday and Noon single game on Sunday.
Stewart was in command all afternoon in landing her second straight season of 20 wins (went 29-6 as a junior in 2016). She struck out seven of the first nine batters she faced and the lone hit allowed was a leadoff single by Taty Forbes in the fourth inning.
Stewart, who combined with Victoria Brown for a shutout in the series opener, limited the Chanticleers to one earned run, six hits and struck out 18 over 12 innings pitched in the series.
Coastal starting pitcher Taylor Rahach ran into trouble early as a pair of walks (Kara Gremillion, Hayden) and hit by pitch (Aleah Craighton) loaded the bases in Louisiana's first at bat.
Lexie Comeaux drew a seven-pitch walk to start the scoring. Rahach induced an infield popup from Chavez for the second out, but was unable to retire Voinchè who doubled into left center to clear the bases and provide plenty of breathing room for Stewart.
An RBI single by Kelli Martinez pushed the lead to 5-0 and that's where the score remained until the fourth inning when the Cajuns capitalized on a Rahach error to push across two unearned runs for a 7-0 advantage.
Chanticleers reliever Ashley Guillette issued three walks in the fifth inning opening the door for a two-out single from Comeaux which scored senior Sarah Arceneaux with the final run and ended the game by the run rule.
With the win, Louisiana finished 30-5 at Lamson Park in the 2017 season. It's the seventh time reaching 30 wins in the friendly confines (1994, 1995, 2005, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017).
DIAMOND NOTES
- Louisiana's five runs in the first inning marked the 23rd time scoring in the initial frame over 45 games played. Dating back to the Georgia State series (April 22-23), the Ragin' Cajuns have produced 36 runs in the first inning - a span of six games.
- Alex Stewart, the reigning Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year, moved her season Sun Belt record to 13-0 and her career SBC mark to 34-1.
- Alex Stewart has yielded just 13 earned runs and 38 hits over 60-2/3 innings pitched in Sun Belt play this season (13-0, 1.50 ERA in SBC play). In five of the seven league series, she's held the opposition to two earned runs or fewer.
- Alex Stewart's season-high 10 strikeouts were one off of her career-high 11 recorded three times (2015 at Texas State; 2016 at Troy, vs. Texas State).
- Corin Voinchè eclipsed her previous career-high RBI tally of three reached twice earlier this season (Apr. 8 vs. Troy; Apr. 22 vs. Georgia State).
- Since taking over starting duties at first base and the No. 7 spot in the lineup, Corin Voinchè is batting .367 with three doubles, a homer and 13 RBI and has struck out only five time over 59 plate appearances.
- Ragin' Cajuns batters drew seven more walks on Sunday, finishing with 26 walks in the series with Coastal Carolina. Louisiana has drawn 248 walks which is ahead of Auburn's 239 for the national lead.
- The Ragin' Cajuns were one of the nation's most productive offenses in April. The squad finished the month scoring 171 runs off 162 hits in 17 games. The team's batting average was .375 and they collected 52 extra base hits (20 doubles, 3 triples, 29 home runs) for a .637 slugging percentage.
- Lexie Comeaux added two more RBI to her weekend series total, giving her a series-high nine RBI. Comeaux has posted 16 RBI the past two Sun Belt series (7 vs. Georgia State).
- Kassidy Zeringue led the Cajuns in hits over the weekend, going 5-for-7 at the plate. The performance raised her season average to .404.
- Kara Gremillion walked twice in the contest to extend her team season-high reached base streak to 37 games. DJ Sanders (28) and Haley Hayden (23) are the other Cajuns with active reached base streaks of 20-plus games.
- Alex Stewart's shutout marked the pitching staff's 12th of the season. The unit has held foes to two runs or fewer 27 times through 45 games and has yielded five-plus only twice.
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Rupp Spins 15-Strikeout Gem; Bobcats Sweep Troy
SAN MARCOS, Texas – Randi Rupp struck out 15 of the 24 she faced in a one-hit, complete-game shutout of Troy. The Bobcats offense plated three runs for the 3-0 final, completing the series sweep of the Trojans.
Not only were the 15 strikeouts a career-high for Rupp, but she also eclipsed the 900 career strikeout plateau when she fanned the side in the fifth. She joins TXST all-time career strikeout leader Nicole Neuerburg (1,019) as the only Bobcats in program history with 900-plus strikeouts.
Rupp, a junior, is now 24-7 on the season, has 10 games with double-digit strikeouts and 10 solo shutouts and owns parts of three others.
Texas State improved to 38-11 overall and 17-6 in Sun Belt play. Troy falls to 20-32 and 8-17 against conference play.
Christiana McDowell and Jaelyn Young led the Bobcats at the plate with two and one hits, respectively. TXST was also patient in the batter's box, totaling seven walks.
Texas State loaded the bases with walks in the bottom of the first and plated two runs for the early 2-0 lead. Young came away with the Bobcats' first hit and RBI of the day with a single through the right side that plated Kimberlin Naivar and kept the bases loaded. Kennedy Cline followed with a sacrifice fly to center, which scored Corrina Liscano.
After leaving runner on in both the second and third, Texas State added to its lead with a run in the fourth. McDowell led off the frame with a double down the left-field line and moved to third on Bailee Carter's sac bunt. McDowell then came home for the 3-0 lead on Naivar's RBI groundout to shortstop.
Neither team threatened the rest of the way – although TXST put runners on in both the fifth and sixth – as Texas State won its sixth Sun Belt series of the season and fourth via a sweep.
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SB: Mavs Knock Most Hits Since 2011 In Win
BOONE, N.C. - The flood gates opened as UTA scored 13 runs over the final three innings and used a season-high in hits to down Appalachian State 14-3 at Sywassink/Lloyed Family Stadium on Sunday.
The Mavericks (26-22, 12-12 Sun Belt) knocked 20 hits for the first time since hitting 25 in 2011, besting the previous season high of 16 achieved against ULM earlier in the campaign. App State fell to 14-21 in its final home Sun Belt series.
"We had a difficult day yesterday, we did not execute and it seemed like the ball would just not bounce our way," UTA coach Kristie Fox said. "Last night we discussed our character and values as a team and got back to basics. I really like the way they bounced back and competed today and created their own luck."
Krista Rude, Whitney Walton and Bri Burchianti each had a trio of hits on the day. Rude came around to score two, while Walton had two runs scored and three RBI. Sandra Mendoza, Aileen Garcia, Shelbi Sikes and Laura Curry each knocked a pair of hits. Mendoza led the two-hit group with two runs scored and a RBI.
Sam Clakley worked around a tight strike zone to earn her 20th win of the season, tied for seventh in single-season history, as she ran her overall record to 20-12. Clakley struck out one in her six-inning outing, allowing six hits and three earned runs. Mariah Denson pinched a quiet final frame with one strikeout and a hit allowed.
"Sam continues to mature on the mound and she wants the ball in her hand with the game on the line," Fox said. "Today she battled through adversity and gave us the outing we needed from her."
After starting slow in Saturday's doubleheader, the Mavs wasted no time crossing the plate with the opening run of the game. A double by Garcia in the second was helped along by Burchianti's pinch-hit RBI single.
The Mountaineers scored three in the fourth to take a brief advantage, highlighted by a two-run homer with two outs, but the lead was short lived as the Mavs would send three runs across in the fifth and sixth innings.
Walton's RBI single with no outs started off the scoring as Mendoza came around to cross home. Garcia sent one deep to center to bring in Rude on a sac fly and Walton closed out the offense in the fifth by running in on a wild pitch. The sixth was highlighted by a hard-hit liner that bounced off the top of the left-field wall from Walton to bring home two.
Wright belted a solo shot to start off the seventh on the first of eight hits in the inning as the Mavs put up a seven spot to close out the weekend.
UTA ends the regular season with five games at home beginning with a doubleheader on Tuesday against Houston in nonconference play. The Mavs then host rival Texas State in a three-game series that opens on Friday.
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Softball Grabs Comeback Win Over Georgia State
ATLANTA - The ULM softball team scored three runs in the top of the sixth inning before plating the eventual winning run in the top of the 10th inning on Sunday for a 6-5 extra inning comeback win over Georgia State in the teams' series finale.
TURNING POINT
-Samantha Agamaite led off the top of the 10th inning with a single but was thrown out moments later trying to score on Jessie Watts' double and the game remained tied. Later in the inning, Megan Shaw delivered a two out single into center field that scored Watts to push ULM ahead.
-Watts then worked around a pair of singles to close the game out in the bottom of the 10th and give ULM the win.
NOTABLES
-Cheyanne Lyon, Sami Billeaudeau and Watts each posted two hits to combine for six of ULM's 12 hits. Jayden Mount, Sydney McKay, Hunter Hogan, Samantha Agamaite, Brie Wrobel and Megan Shaw each contributed one hit apiece.
-Mount, Hunter Hogan, Ana Hogan, Billeaudeau and Shaw all had an RBI in the comeback.
-Watts was the fifth and final Warhawk pitcher on Sunday, as she earned the win after pitching the final five innings, allowing only three hits, as she earned the win.
UP NEXT
-The Warhawks now return home for their final regular season Sun Belt series of the season when they host the Ragin Cajuns in Saturday and Sunday.
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DRAKE HOMERS TWICE; GSU FALLS IN 10 INNINGS
ATLANTA - Georgia State (30-21, 15-9 SBC) lost 6-5 in 10 innings Sunday as UL Monroe avoided the series sweep. The Panthers visit rival Georgia Southern next weekend to wrap up the regular season.
Ivie Drake homered twice Sunday, including a two-run shot in the fifth that gave Georgia State a 5-2 lead. ULM would rally with three runs in the sixth. The two sides would need 10 innings before the Warhawks would pull ahead. GSU got two runners on in the home half, but ULM held on to avoid the series sweep.
Senior Kensey Caldwell had a good game on Senior Day as she started off the scoring with a two-RBI double in the first inning. Fellow senior Mandy Blackwell had a two-hit day and senior Morgan Brown also reached base.
Both Kinsley Jennings and Mandy Chance went five innings in the circle Sunday with Chance allowing only one run over the final five frames.
Georgia State wraps up the regular season next weekend in Statesboro as the Panthers take on rival Georgia Southern for a three-game series.
Follow along with Georgia State on Twitter (@GSU_Softball) for the latest news.
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Softball Drops Conference Finale to UTA
BOONE, N.C. – Despite holding a 3-1 lead, Appalachian State softball fell to UTA 14-3 on Senior Day after the Mavs turned in two three-run frames and closed the ballgame with a seven-run seventh inning on Sunday at the Sywassink/Lloyd Family Softball Stadium in Boone.
Appalachian State (14-31, 2-18 SBC) made seven connections in game three, and Haley Stewart was perfect at the plate going 3-for-3 with three singles and scored one run. Vanessa Ciocatto grabbed her 19th start of the season and pitched 2.2 innings, and Kenzie Longanecker (9-12) came in relief for 4.1 frames and rang up five Mavericks to bring her season total to 111 strikeouts.
Game Three: UTA 14, App State 3
After a quick first inning, the Mavs (26-22, 12-12 SBC) started rolling in the second scoring one run on three hits and had two in scoring position, but Keri White fielded her third double play as a Mountaineer to end the top of the second down by one.
In the third and fourth innings, the Mavs put two runners in scoring position in both outings, but Longanecker pulled App State out of the jam twice inducing two quick outs in the third and ending the fourth fanning two Mavericks.
Then the tables turned at the bottom of the fourth when App State jumped out to a 3-1 lead. With two outs on the board, Jenny Dodd blasted a home run that hit the side of the Sofield Indoor Facility to tie the game up at one apiece. With the momentum on Appalachian's side, Stewart and Ally Walters followed Dodd with a single and a walk respectively, and White plated them in with a two-run RBI to left field.
At the top of the fifth, the Mavs regained the lead scoring three runs on three hits and one error to hold the one-run advantage, and added three in the sixth for the 7-3 lead.
Then at the top of the seventh, the Mavs extended their lead to 14-3 tacking on seven runs to put game three out of reach for the Mountaineers.
Up Next
App State softball will host their last opponent of the season, NCCU, Wednesday, May 3 for a doubleheader at 6 p.m at the Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium for Bingo Night.
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Strong Pitching Propels Texas State Over Troy
SAN MARCOS, Texas- The Troy softball team fell to Texas State 3-0 on Sunday at the Bobcat Softball Stadium in their final road game of the season.
After loading the bases on walks, an RBI single from Jaelyn Young gave the Bobcats a 1-0 lead. Another run came across the plate in the bottom of the first after a sacrifice fly before the Trojans were able to get out of the jam, leaving two runners stranded.
Christiana McDowell led off the bottom of the fourth with a double down the left side, and sacrifice bunt advanced runner to third. A 5-3 put out with an RBI scored the runner from third to give Texas State their final 3-0 lead.
Sophomore Taylor Corbett broke up Randi Rupp's no hitter with a single up the middle, but a fielder's choice and a 4-3 put out ended the inning, leaving one runner stranded for the Trojans.
With one Texas State runner on, a 6-4-3 double play ended the sixth inning, giving the Trojans one last chance to score some runs. Troy was unable to get another hit as Rupp reached 900 career strikeouts and a career-high 15 strikeouts in a game.
Graves earned the start and threw another complete game. She faced 27 batters with seven walks and two strikeouts, and took the loss to move to 8-10 on the season.
NOTEWORTHY
• Texas State now takes a 10-4 lead in the series against the Trojans.
• Taylor Corbett was 1-for-3 on the day, getting Troy's lone hit in the game.
• Becca Hartley remains the team leader in batting average (.346), slugging percentage (.742), runs (44), hits (55), RBIs (44), doubles (11), triples (2), and home runs (16).
UP NEXT
Troy will wrap up its regular season with a Sunday doubleheader against South Alabama on May 7. The first pitch is set for 1 p.m. The Trojans are hosting the Sun Belt Conference Tournament May 10-13 at the Troy Softball Complex. Tickets for the event can be found here.
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Softball Falls in Series Finale
Lafayette, La. - Coastal Carolina's softball team was looking to avoid the sweep when they played 16th-ranked Louisiana in Sunday's matinee, but came up short when the nationally-ranked Ragin' Cajuns defeated CCU 8-0.
After setting down the Chanticleers in order the Ragin' Cajuns went to work in the bottom of the first. They used three walks, a hit batsman and three hits to push five runs across the plate to take the early five-run lead.
Neither team could score over the next two innings, but a CCU error led to two unearned runs in the fourth for ULL, pushing the home team's lead to 7-0.
The Ragin' Cajuns would win it in the bottom of the fifth. After loading the bases on three walks, a two-out single from Lexi Comeaux would score the eighth run to end the game.
ULL pitcher Alex Stewart (20-3) picked up the win while Coastal's Taylor Rahach (12-9) took the loss.
ULL, who won the regular season championship with yesterday's win, moves to 39-6 overall and 20-1 in Sun Belt Conference action. CCU moves to 29-22 overall and 7-16 in conference play.
CCU ends the regular season next week when they host Appalachian State. The games will be played Friday and Saturday, May 5-6. A double header will be played Friday with the first game scheduled for a noon start. Saturday's contest will start at 1 p.m.
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Georgia Southern Falls to South Alabama in Series Finale
MOBILE, Ala. – The Georgia Southern softball team dropped their series finale to South Alabama in Mobile. The Eagles (24-25, 12-12 SBC) were swept by the Jaguars (31-18, 13-12 SBC) over the weekend, falling 7-2 in the single game on Sunday afternoon.
The Eagles struck first in game three of the series, plating two unearned runs in the top of the third to take an early lead. GS held that lead up until the bottom of the fifth inning, where the Jaguars tied the game up with two bases loaded walks, making the score 2-2.
South Alabama took the lead after an explosive sixth inning where they plated five runs off of five hits. The Eagles were not able to come back from the sixth inning deficit, falling 7-2 on Sunday afternoon and moving to 12-12 in Sun Belt conference play.
Dixie Raley (L, 13-17) was tabbed with the loss, throwing 5.1 innings in the circle. Kierra Camp came in to pitch in relief and finished out the game, throwing the final two outs. Offensively, Andrea McKenzie led the way with two hits while Emily Snider, Shelby Wilson and India Davis each had one.
UP NEXT:
Georgia Southern will return home next weekend for their last regular season Sun Belt series against Georgia State. The Eagles will play the Panthers in a single game on Friday and a doubleheader on Saturday at Eagle Field.