ORLANDO, Fla. – Georgia Southern softball (10-8) split day two of the Charge on Classic hosted by UCF at the UCF Softball Complex. The Eagles comeback in game one fell just short dropping to George Mason, 9-7, before bouncing back with a 5-3 win over Providence in game two.
Payton Cushman and
Emma Davis led the Eagle offense on Saturday combining for nine of the Eagles 16 hits on the day. Cushman tallied two doubles, three RBI, and three runs scorerd while Davis tallied four singles, one run batted in, and two runs scored.
GAME ONE (Georgia Southern 7, George Mason 9)
The Eagles looked to rally after being down 9-2 but the comeback fell short as the Eagles couldn't produce in the final two innings.
George Mason looked to score early in the first on a pair of singles, but an infield pop-up and strikeout ended the threat. The Patriots eventually got on the board in the second scoring a pair of runs to take an 2-0 lead as a Patriot RBI-double to left field scored two unearned runs.
Georgia Southern led off the inning with back-to-back walks drawn by
Kayla Christensen and
Valerie Combs before
Payton Cushman cut into the lead on an RBI single back up the middle.
Madi Gillespie moved the runners to second and third on a sacrifice bunt before
Faith Barth drew the third walk of the inning to load the bases.
Emma Davis reached on a fielding error to even the score at 2-2.
The Patriots would respond to take the lead again exploding for seven runs on seven hits in the top of the fourth. In the bottom of the frame, the Eagles would cut into the deficit scoring three runs on three hits. Christensen reached on a fielding error before back-to-back doubles by Combs and Cushman got the offense going. Barth tallied the third hit of the inning to plate the third run of the inning.
The Eagle offense continued to battle in the fifth as Davis led off with a single before
Kyla Maxwell drew a four-pitch walk.
Madison Humber recorded a sacrifice bunt to move the runners for Christensen who doubled to left center to put the Eagles within two, 9-7.
Bailey Holland (2-4) picked up the loss in the circle tossing 3.2 innings allowing seven runs on eight hits. In relief,
Morgan Kendrick tossed 3.1 innings allowing two runs on six hits.
Cushman led the offense going 3-for-5 for her fifth multi-hit performance of the season and tallied three runs batted in. Davis recorded her second multi-hit performance of the season going 2-for-4 and added a stolen base.
GAME TWO (Georgia Southern 5, Providence 3)
Providence struck first in the opening frame to take an early 2-0 lead on a two-RBI single. The Eagles looked to respond in the bottom half drawing three walks to load the bases but two flyouts ended the inning.
Davis led off the bottom of the second recording an infield single and Christensen reached on a fielder choice for Combs to punch one through the left side to extend the Eagle lead, 5-2.
After allowing two runs on two hits in the first inning,
Maddie Johnson shutout the Friars the rest of the way and only allowed three more hits in the final five frames to secure the victory in the circle. The freshman tossed her fifth complete game of the season and picked up six strikeouts in the contest.
The Friars looked to answer in the top of the seventh by scoring a run and putting the tying run on first but back-to-back popouts ended the game.
Cushman and Davis led the offense once again with a pair of hits each and Combs added two runs batted in.
Next Up
The Eagles wrap up the Charge on Classic on Sunday against UCF at the UCF Softball Complex. First pitch is scheduled for noon and the contest is set to be broadcast on ESPN+.
