Eagles Brave Cold to Drop Dutch, Fall to No. 7 Tennessee
3/6/2011 11:04:00 PM | Softball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Georgia Southern Softball came up victorious against a morning wintry mix and the Dutch National Softball Team, 5-2, on Sunday (March 6th) in an exhibition game at the Tennessee Classic. The Eagles dropped the second game to seventh-ranked Tennessee, 10-2. The bottom of the Eagle lineup thrived in the day's first game, accounting for five of the Eagles seven hits and all five RBI against the Dutch National Team. Against the Lady Vols, Marie Fogle (Rincon, Ga.) slugged a leadoff home run in a two-run first inning and went two-for-two in the game.
In Georgia Southern's (7-12) exhibition game with the Dutch National Team, the Dutch jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning when Solange Starrenburg singled to right field with two outs. The single plated Fabienne van Uden and Nathalie Timmermans.
The Eagles responded in the top of the second with a two-run double off the bat of senior Kelly Burnett (Boynton Beach, Fla.). The two-out hit brought senior Hanna Ennis (Snellville, Ga.) and junior Mackenzie Williams (Baxley, Ga.) in to score and tie the game at 2-2.
In the top of the fifth, Georgia Southern took its first lead of the game, 4-2, on a Dutch fielding error. Tabby Douberley (Clyo, Ga.) hit a ball through the Dutch second baseman's wickets and into rightfield. That error allowed Jorie Walker (Dublin, Ga.) and Fogle to score for the Eagles.
Georgia Southern extended its lead to 5-2 in the sixth when Alexa Lewis (Lawrenceville, Ga.) singled up the middle to score Ennis. Ennis had reached base when Dutch third baseman Virginie Anneveld was unable to cleanly field a ground ball. Burnett singled up the middle with two outs to move Ennis into scoring position, before Lewis' single brought Ennis home for the final run of the game.
Megen Smith (Springfield, Ga.) earned the victory against the Dutch National Team. She posted her best outing of the season, tossing a complete game and allowing two runs off seven hits while striking out five.
In Georgia Southern's finale at the Tennessee Classic, Fogle got the Eagles off to a fast start by belting a leadoff home run over the left field wall to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead. The long-ball is Fogle's third leadoff home run and the Eagles' sixth first inning home run this season. Andrea Tarashuk (Flemington, N.J.) doubled to left field with one out in the inning before being lifted for pinch hitter Nicole Benton (Wrightsville, Ga.). Benton advanced to third on a wild pitch and a walk to Burnett put runners on the corners. The Eagles brought Benton home on a perfectly executed double-steal play where Burnett drew a throw to second allowing Benton to come home and give the Eagles a 2-0 lead.
The Lady Vols scored one in the bottom of the first to cut the Eagle lead to 2-1. Tennessee then grabbed the lead in the bottom of the third with three runs off two hits and two Eagle errors.
Georgia Southern had two hits beyond the first inning with a single from Fogle and a double by freshman pinch hitter Shelby Morrill (Madison, Ga.). Tennessee, however, posted three runs in the fourth and three more in the fifth to nail down the 10-2 victory.
Georgia Southern returns home from its 16-game road trip on Wednesday March 9th, for a doubleheader with Mercer at Eagle Field. Game times are scheduled for 3 and 5 p.m. The first 50 fans will receive a free GSU spirit band. On Thursday (March10th), the Eagles play host to Mount St. Marys for a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m. The first 50 fans will receive free food courtesy of Domino's Pizza.
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. Live stats and video are available at GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com.
