SAVANNAH, Georgia – In a battle for first place in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Southern Division, Savannah State softball took sole possession of the top spot with a doubleheader sweep of Bethune-Cookman on Friday.
The Lady Tigers improved to 10-1 in MEAC play with the two wins and 17-15 on the season. SSU and Cookman will close out the series on Saturday with a single game, scheduled for 10 a.m. on Lady Tiger Field. Cookman falls to 8-3 in the MEAC, and 15-27 overall.
Savannah State racked up a combined 24 hits over the two games on Friday. The Lady Tigers held onto a tight lead in game one, curbing a Cookman rally to win 8-5. In game two, SSU spread out 12 hits over seven innings for an 11-6 victory.
The Lady Tigers are on a 10-game MEAC win streak, the longest since the school joined the conference in the 2012 season. SSU won the MEAC Southern Division regular season title in their first year of competition in the conference.
SSU added single runs in the first and third innings of game one. In the fifth, SSU exploded with a four hits, including a triple from Alexis Singleton, racking up five runs for a 7-0 lead.
Junior slugger Torrian Wright blasted her 16th home run of the season in the same inning, scoring Amanda Hallman, and tying the school record for single season home runs. Wright set the record in her freshman year.
Wright continues to lead all of NCAA Division I softball in batting average (.565), on-base percentage (.750), and slugging percentage (1.304). As a team, SSU is ranked ninth nationally in home runs per game, averaging 1.67 an outing.
Bethune-Cookman broke their scoring drought in the sixth inning, platting three runs on five hits. SSU added a single run in the bottom of the sixth on a double from Amber Hallman that platted Wright.
In the top of the seventh, Cookman scored two runs on two hits, and a costly SSU error. With two runners on and two outs, freshman pitcherAshley Eichenlaub forced a groundout from Mariah Davis to end the game.
Eichenlaub, a Savannah native, pitched a full game to earn her 11th win of the season. She allowed five runs (four earned) on 13 hits with two strikeouts and one walk.
The Lady Tigers had 14 hits in the game, and were led at the plate by sophomore Ama. Hallman who went 4-for-4. Amb. Hallman went 3-for-4 in the game, while freshman Brianna Harris and Wright each added two hits.
The Lady Wildcats came out firing in game two. B-CU platted two runs on one hit to open the game and tacked on another run in the third for a 3-0 lead.
Wright singled to left in the bottom of the third, scoring Harris who reached on a single. Amb. Hallman singled as well, scoring Ama. Hallman to cut the Lady Wildcat's lead to a single run.
B-CU extended their lead in the next inning with two runs on two hits. SSU stranded three runners in the bottom of the frame as the Lady Wildcats held onto a 5-2 lead into the fifth.
SSU owned the fifth and sixth innings. To open the bottom of the fifth, Amb. Hallman hit her 12th home run of the season, scoring Wright who was walked.
The Lady Tigers' defense staved off additional scoring from Cookman in the top of the sixth, while going to work in the bottom of the frame. SSU racked up seven runs on four hits, including a three-run homer from Eichenlaub and triples from Harris and Singleton.
After trailing for four innings, SSU took an 11-5 lead into the final inning. B-CU platted a single run in the top of the seventh as Ama. Hallman struck out Melissa Berouty to end the game.
Ama. Hallman earned her sixth win of the season, pitching a full 7.0 innings. She allowed six runs (three earned) on seven hits with three walks and five strikeouts.
Amb. Hallman led the Lady Tigers from the plate in game two, going 3-for-4 with three RBI. Harris, Ama. Hallman and Eicenlaub each had two hits in the game.
Savannah State will finish up the regular season with a three-game MEAC home series against South Carolina State May 2-3, before heading to the 2015 MEAC Championship Tournament in Daytona Beach Fla. May 7-9.
Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
COURTESY SAVANNAH STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
No comments:
Post a Comment