SUNDAY'S SCORES
Eastern Kentucky 8, Georgetown 3
UT Martin 4, Abilene Christian 3
North Texas 2,
UT Martin 1
Morehead State 5, North Carolina A&T 0
Charlotte 11,
Morehead State 1
Jacksonville State 20, College of Charleston 9
Tennessee Tech 7, @Chattanooga 5
Marist 5,
@Belmont 3
Northern Kentucky 6,
@Belmont 5
@Mississippi State 4,
Tennessee State 0
EASTERN KENTUCKY 8, GEORGETOWN 3
ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Eastern Kentucky University softball team used three home runs as the Colonels cruised past Georgetown University on the way to their third straight win on Sunday.
Eastern (7-2) wasted no time scoring against the Hoyas. A walk by Ariyana Miranda and a single by Zoe Mihalicz put runners on first and second with one out. Carly Robinson and Vianna Barron drew back-to-back walks to score the first run of the game. Isabella Gonzalez brought home Mihalicz with a RBI groundout to give the Colonels a 2-0 lead after the first inning.
Georgetown (1-9) answered back in the top of the second. Noelle Holiday led off the inning with a solo shot to dead center field to cut in the Colonel lead, 2-1.
Eastern responded.
With two outs in the bottom of the second, Sammi Miller doubled into the right center gap to get things started. Miranda singled into right field to score Miller from second and push the EKU lead to 3-1. Mihalicz joined the fun and sent a two run shot over the left field fence to extend the Eastern lead 5-1.
Mollie Paulick deposited her third home run of the season off the netting in front of the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth inning to give Eastern a 6-1 lead.
The Hoyas answered back with a home run of their own after Mae Forshey cleared the left field fence to cut the Colonel lead to 6-2 after three and a half innings.
In the bottom of the fourth after a Miranda walk, Mihalicz hit her second home run of the game into the left center gap to give Eastern the 8-2 lead.
Paulick (3-1) started in the circle tossing seven innings, allowing two runs and striking out eight.
Mihalicz went 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBIs. Miller went 2-for 3 with one double and a walk.
The Colonels are off to their best start since the 2016 season.
Eastern returns to the diamond next weekend at the UNCW Tournament in Wilmington, North Carolina. First pitch against George Washington is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Friday.
TENNESSEE TECH 7, CHATTANOOGA 5
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - For the first four innings on Sunday, it looked like Tennessee Tech’s offensive slump was continuing as Chattanooga pitcher Allison Swinford yielded three hits – including a solo home run to Sydney Love-Baker – and not much else to the Golden Eagle batters.
That all changed in the fifth inning as the Golden Eagles (6-4) struck for six runs in the frame to move atop the Mocs and take a 7-5 victory to close out the Chattanooga Challenge on Sunday.
Love-Baker, who ended the game with a 1-for-3 performance with the home run, drove in two runs and scored two runs in the contest. Haeli Bryson also drove in two runs for the Golden Eagles.
Alyssa Arden (4-1) picked up her fourth victory of the season, allowing five runs on eight hits as she went the distance. She walked four and struck out five along the way.
Her counterpart in the circle, Swinford, lasted four completed frames and was pulled after loading the bases with no one out in the fifth. She ended the game allowing five runs on five hits, walking two and striking out one. Her relief, Celie Hudson, worked the final three innings, allowing two runs on four hits, walking one and striking out three.
Chattanooga took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first as Aly Walker doubled to left center to drive in two runs. Tech cut the deficit in half in the top of the third as Love-Baker hit her third home run of the season with a drive to left. The Mocs got that run back in the bottom half of the inning as Katie Corum had an RBI single.
Things came together for Tech and fell apart for Chattanooga in the fifth. Nicolle Nysted led off with a double to right center, then Paxton Grimes took a walk on five pitches.
Chandler Caldwell put down a bunt, but UTC was unable to get anyone out on the infield single. Love-Baker, with the bases loaded, earned an RBi as she was also walked on five pitches for Tech’s seventh bases-loaded walk of the season.
As Nysted came home to score, Chattanooga pulled the trigger and switched to Hudson. On the first pitch, Jessie Lowery hit a single into center field to plate Grimes. Bryson followed up with a two-run double to left center, scoring Caldwell and Love-Baker. Lowery attempted to score, but was called out at the plate.
Raleigh Lewis joined the hit parade, dropping a single into center to score Bryson, then head coach Michelle DePolo put Hannah Richter to pinch run for Lewis. An Alexis Trimiar grounder to third allowed Richter to advance to second, then the pinch runner came home to score as Beth McCulley singled past second base and advanced on the throw home.
By the time the inning came to a close, Tech led 7-3 with six runs on six hits and one left on.
Chattanooga had a furious effort to try to retake the lead, starting with two runs in the fifth as Emma Sturdivant hit a two-run round-tripper to make it 7-5.
In the sixth, the Mocs loaded the bases with two down and Walker lined a grounder to first. The ball glanced off Nysted’s glove and into the grasp of Trimiar’s, who rushed to touch up the bag at first to end the scoring threat and the inning.
The Mocs saw their seventh and final chance come to a close quickly as Arden coaxed three outs on six pitches on a grounder to Love-Baker, a flyout to Lowery and a foul out to Grimes.
The Golden Eagles return to action on Friday as they travel to Spartanburg, S.C., for the Wings Etc. Classic, hosted by USC Upstate. Tech takes on Virginia first, scheduled for a Noon Central start on Friday.
MISSISSIPPI STATE 4, TENNESSEE STATE 0
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Tennessee State softball team was held to two hits during the championship game of the Bulldog Kickoff Classic. The host team, Mississippi State claimed the title with a 4-0 decision over the Tigers, improving to 9-1; TSU dropped to 2-7.
MSU jumped out to an early lead with two runs in first off starter Abbey Woodall. The Bulldogs added two insurance runs in the sixth off reliever Raven Loveless.
Reese Weber registered the first of the game for the Big Blue with a double to center in the second inning. Sarah Snell collected the only other hit for TSU with an infield single in the fourth.
Woodall was tagged with the loss and dropped to 0-2. Loveless worked 5.1 innings, allowing two runs, one earned, off six hits and two walks.
UT MARTIN 4, ABILENE CHRISTIAN 3; NORTH TEXAS 2, UT MARTIN 1
DENTON, Texas – Sophomore infielder Chelsey Gore wrapped up an impressive weekend for the University of Tennessee at Martin softball team with six hits on Sunday to split the final day of the North Texas Invitational.
The Skyhawks (4-5) picked up a 4-3 walk-off win over Abilene Christian in extra innings for their first win of the week while pushing tournament host North Texas to the edge before ultimately falling 2-1.
UT Martin tallied 14 hits over the doubleheader while Gore paced the squad with six hits in seven at bats, including a pair of triples while driving in one RBI and scoring three runs. The trio of Lex Rogers, Kaitlyn Kelley and Aalia Bivens also tallied multiple base hits while Shyanne Sheffield led the team with two RBIs.
Erin Gallagher earned a no-decision against Abilene Christian despite a strong performance, allowing one earned run over six innings of work. Seeley Layne (1-2) would tally her first win of the season following 2.1 innings of relief. Hannah Ridolfi (1-1) pitched 5.2 innings against North Texas and allowed two runs while holding the Mean Green to a .190 batting average.
Game 8: UT Martin 4, Abilene Christian 3 (Eight Innings)
UT Martin jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning after being shutout in two games yesterday. A one-out triple by Gore gave the Skyhawks a quick spark before a single to left by Bivens put the Skyhawks on the board.
The Skyhawks would add to their margin in the bottom of the fifth inning. Paige Clark started a two-out rally with a RBI double to score Rogers on the play before later moving to third herself. With the game’s third run just 60 feet from home, Gore brought home the leadoff speedster with a single to make it a 6-0 lead.
Abilene Christian would not go away quietly however, scoring three runs in the top of the seventh to send the game to extra innings. A single and a pair of walks were followed by RBI groundouts and a double to left center to knot the game at three runs each.
In the bottom of the eighth inning it was Gore who was at the forefront again. Reaching on a leadoff single, Gore moved into scoring position on a sacrifice before later coming home to score on a sacrifice fly by Sheffield to serve as the 4-3 game-winner.
Game 9: North Texas 2, UT Martin 1
Much like in the first game, it was UT Martin which jumped out to an early lead. Back-to-back singles by Gore and Bivens sparked the inning while a third hit in the inning – this time from Sheffield – plated an early run.
Ridolfi would hold North Texas without a hit from the second inning until the bottom of the sixth when the hosts found its offensive rhythm. A double by Lacy Gregory put a runner in scoring position but it was a two-run home run by Hanna Rebar which proved to be the difference in the game, giving the Mean Green a 2-1 victory.
UT Martin will make its long anticipated home debut at Bettye Giles Field in a jam-packed week which features six home games. Action will begin with a doubleheader against Green Bay on Thursday, Feb. 20 at noon before playing host to the Huddle House Classic on Saturday and Sunday.
MOREHEAD STATE 5, NORTH CAROLINA A&T 0; CHARLOTTE 11, MOREHEAD STATE 1
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Eagles softball again comes away with a two-game split on the final day at the First Pitch Classic at Sue M. Daughtridge Stadium to start the season with a 2-2 record.
Morehead State started Sunday by defeating North Carolina A&T (1-5) 5-0 followed by a loss to host Charlotte (5-6) 11-1 to the end the afternoon. The victory against North Carolina A&T marks the first shutout win under head coach Samantha Jones.
The Eagles will now travel to Conway, Ark. where they will compete in the Michelle Short Memorial Classic hosted by Central Arkansas. The team begins the event on Saturday with games against Jackson State (4-5) at 12:00 p.m. and Arkansas-Pine Bluff (0-9) at 2:15 p.m.
Freshman Taylor Rhea began the scoring for the Eagles with a groundout in the first that drove in a runner. Sophomore Adeline Nicholson hammered a two-run home run in the fourth to make it a 3-0 game. Later in the same inning, junior Alexis Strother added to the lead with a solo homer. In the sixth, sophomore Peyton Rose hit an RBI single to account for the 5-0 margin.
Nicholson continues her hot start to the season, going 3-for-3 on the game, highlighted by her first home run in an Eagles uniform. Nicholson has recorded two RBI in each of MSU's first three games. Senior Randi Hamilton (1-0) pitched a complete game shutout while striking out two. The Eagles allowed only four hits for the Aggies, a season-low to this point in the new year. Sophomore Peyton Slater went 1-for-2 on the game with two runs scored.
Charlotte struck early with four runs in the first coming from an RBI single, a two-RBI double, and another RBI single. The 49ers furthered their lead in the next inning off back-to-back solo homers, an RBI sac-fly, and a three-run home run that pushed the margin to 10-0. MSU managed to get some of that deficit back in the third inning on a wild play that saw a single by sophomore Peyton Slater lead to a run scored off a throwing error from Charlotte's right fielder. The home team responded in the bottom of that inning from an RBI fielder's choice to account for the 11-1 final score.
Charlotte exploded for 10 hits in the first two innings against Eagles pitchers with freshman Kelsey Perkins (1-1) taking the loss. MSU came away from the game with zero errors, the first occurrence for the team this season. Charlotte bested Morehead State in hits with 11 compared to five for the Eagles.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 20, COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 9
CONWAY, S.C. – The Jacksonville State softball team closed Coastal Carolina's Battle at the Beach with a bang, rolling to a 20-9 win over College of Charleston on Sunday morning.
The Gamecocks scored often in the mercy-rule win, racking up 20 runs on 15 hits and eight walks. Sophomore Karsen Mosley drove in six runs and scored three in her 2-for-4 day that featured a grand slam in the sixth inning. Senior Ryann Luna also had a big day, going 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBI.
After the Cougars plated three in the bottom of the first, JSU got its offense going in the second. RBI grounders from Maddie Clay and Mosley started the scoring before a two-run double from senior Alexus Jimmerson put the Gamecocks up 4-3.
College of Charleston tied it in the home half of the second, but the Gamecocks broke it open with a six-run third. JSU sent 11 batters to the plate in the inning, scoring the six runs on six hits to take a 10-4 lead.
The Cougars clawed back, getting one in the third and four in the fourth to pull within a run at 10-9, but the JSU offense took back over from there.
Three runs crossed in the fifth and then a seven-run sixth put the game out of reach and set up the mercy-rule win.
Mosley's slam and Luna's three-run blast accounted for all seven runs in the inning and put the 20-9 final score on the board.
Lexi Androlevich (1-0) earned the win in relief for JSU, holding the Cougars to an unearned run on two hits in 2 and 2/3 innings of work. Reagan Watkins started the game and pitched the first 3 and 1/3 innings, allowing eight runs on nine hits.
Payton Lemire (0-2) suffered the loss for the Cougars, giving up four runs on three hits while recording just two outs in relief.
The Gamecocks return to action on Friday, when they begin play in the Southeastern Louisiana Mardi Gras Mambo in Youngsville, La. They will open play against Nicholls State on Friday at 1 p.m.