Seventh-Inning Rally Gives Eagle Softball Split Against Cougars
3/26/2011 10:32:00 PM | Softball
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - The middle of Georgia Southern's lineup delivered when it mattered most to give the Eagles a 4-3 win over College of Charleston in the second game of Saturday's (March 26th) Southern Conference doubleheader. In game one, Charleston's Alexa Datko tossed a no-hitter to take the 3-0 victory.
The Eagles (16-18, 6-2 SoCon) bounced back with four runs off six hits in game two for a 4-3 come-from-behind win. A double by Mackenzie Williams (Baxley, Ga.) to lead off the seventh inning and then a two-RBI double by Tabby Douberley (Clyo, Ga.) capped off the rally for the final.
"The team fought hard until the last pitch was thrown today," said Head Coach Maggie Johnson. "We are proud of the will to win that was shown today and the key contributions made by our bench."
-GAME 1-
The Cougars opened the scoring in the fourth inning with a two-out three-run home run off the bat of Kristi Woodall. The hit was just the third in the game for the home team and proved to be the game winner.
Relief pitcher Megen Smith (Springfield, Ga.) entered the game in the fifth and worked through a bases-loaded jam. She relieved starting pitcher Brianna Streetmon (Winder, Ga.) who scattered five hits in 4.1 innings of work.
College of Charleston pitcher Datko stymied the Eagle bats and threw a no-hitter. Georgia Southern tallied three walks and saw one College of Charleston error, but were unable to plate any runners. The no-hitter was the first against the Eagles since the 2008 season.
-GAME 2-
Charleston opened game two by scoring a one-out sacrifice fly to take a 1-0 lead after one inning. The run ended a 12.1-inning scoreless streak for GSU starting pitcher Allie Miles (Dacula, Ga.) The Cougars would tack on two more runs in the second off a two-run single by Katie Forbes for a 3-0 Charleston lead.
Marie Fogle (Rincon, Ga.) singled to lead off the fourth inning and scored when Hanna Ennis (Snellville, Ga.) followed immediately with an RBI double to the gap in right-center. Charleston carried its 3-1 lead through the end of the sixth.
Williams (Baxley, Ga.) delivered a leadoff double in the seventh inning to begin the Georgia Southern rally. Nicole Benton (Wrightsville, Ga.) pinch ran for Williams and scored off a single by Sarah Purvis (Warner Robins, Ga.). A bunt single by pinch hitter Kayla Brooks (Jonesboro, Ga.) put runners on first and second for Douberley. Both runners moved up a base on a Charleston wild pitch and on the next pitch, the sophomore drove a double to the gap in left center to score two runs. The Eagles had their first lead of the day, 4-3.
A fielding error with two outs in the Charleston half of the seventh gave the Cougars a shred of hope. Miles finished off the threat by striking out the final Charleston batter for her seventh strikeout of the game. She also earned the victory, her seventh of the season.
Georgia Southern closes out its 10-game road swing on Sunday morning with an 11 a.m. series finale against College of Charleston. Expected rain in the Charleston area forced an earlier start time.
Fans may follow all the action of the 2011 Georgia Southern Softball season by visiting GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/softball or check in for scores at twitter.com/GSScores or facebook.com/GSAthletics for updates.
