Samford advances; Paladins, Mocs avoid elimination

Hanson’s one-hit gem advances top-seeded Samford to championship

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Coming off a no-hitter against No. 4 seed UNCG on Thursday, Samford redshirt senior Mollie Hanson delivered a one-hit gem for the top-seeded Bulldogs as they earned a 2-0 victory over No. 7 seed Mercer on Friday afternoon in the 2016 Southern Conference Softball Tournament at UNCG Softball Stadium in Greensboro, N.C. The victory reserves the Bulldogs a spot in Saturday’s championship.

Samford moves to 39-18 on the year, while Mercer drops to 23-24 and will play again at 8 p.m. with elimination on the line.

Hanson had her no-hit bid broken up with two outs away in the bottom of the seventh inning on a Taylor Rodgers bloop single to center field. She struck out five and did not issue a walk, with her only miscue coming on a hit-by-pitch in the fifth inning. The Dothan, Ala., native was a model of efficiency again, throwing 64 pitches, only three more than her count yesterday. Hanson retired the side in five of her seven innings in the circle.

Sophomore Megan Bilgri allowed five hits, two earned runs and walked only one batter in seven innings for the Bears.

Both pitchers went three up, three down in the first inning. In the top of the second, Samford first baseman Caitlin Bice walked to lead off, and catcher Abby Sweeney launched a two-run jack to left field for what proved to be the only runs of the contest.

The Bulldogs did threaten in the fourth inning when second baseman Abbie Miranda singled through the right side, and Kelsey Royalty followed with another base hit, but a Hannah Trombley pop-up to first base ended the top half.

Mercer was assigned two errors, while Samford managed to stay error-free during a busy day in the field for both sides.

Saturday’s championship, which will match up Samford with one of Furman, Mercer or Chattanooga, is slated for 1 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN3. If the Bulldogs lose the 1 p.m. contest, a winner-take-all game will be held at approximately 3 p.m.

 

Bert’s shutout leads Furman past UNCG

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Furman sophomore Lindsey Bert threw a complete-game shutout, and the No. 2 seed Paladins scored two of their three runs in the top of the first inning of Friday’s opening game to eliminate No. 4 seed UNCG 3-0 at the 2016 Southern Conference Softball Championship at UNCG Softball Stadium in Greensboro, N.C.

The Paladins, now 31-27, will play again at 5:30 p.m. in another elimination contest. The Spartans conclude the 2016 campaign with a record of 33-26.

Bert, a left-hander, allowed only four hits and walked one Spartan for her 20th win of the season. She added a single and a run on offense. Paladin shortstop Sieara Bishop notched the only multi-hit effort of the contest, going 2-for-4 with a run.

Sophomore pitcher Alicia Bazonski was a bright spot for UNCG. She threw four and two thirds innings in relief of freshman Stephanie Bryden, striking out four and allowing three hits and an earned run.

Bishop jump-started the Furman offense in inning one with a single and then advanced to second and eventually third base on a pair of wild pitches. Sophomore Hannah Reynolds, finding herself ahead in the count, knocked her in on a single up the middle. Later in the inning, outfielder Candace Johnson stayed red hot in tournament play by sending a triple to left field, which scored Bert.

Innings two through six were scoreless. Bert retired the side in the fifth and six innings, and Bazonski did the same for the Spartans in the fourth and sixth frames.

Furman added an insurance run in the top of the seventh when Brittany Houston singled up the middle, scoring Emma Ogburn, who had reached on a walk and advanced to scoring position on a Taylor Collins bunt single.

In the bottom of the seventh, UNCG’s offense showed signs of life trailing 3-0. The Spartans, down to their last out, strung together two singles courtesy Bryden and pinch hitter Lacey Leary. A pop-up off the bat of Hagan Kiser, however, sealed Furman’s victory.

 

Chattanooga ousts ETSU with late outburst

GREENSBORO, N.C. – No. 6 seed Chattanooga used a three-run seventh inning to defeat fifth-seeded ETSU 6-3 on Thursday in the third elimination game of the 2016 Southern Conference Softball Championship at UNCG Softball Stadium in Greensboro, N.C.

With the win, the Mocs move to 30-28, and the Bucs end the season with a mark of 20-22. Second baseman Criket Blanco was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run for the Mocs, and teammate Anyssa Robles was 1-for-3 with a three-run homer.

Junior Danielle Knoetze led the Bucs charge, posting a 3-for-4 line with a trio of singles.

Chattanooga’s decisive offensive spurt in the top of the seventh began when Katie Corum scored the go-ahead and run on a wild pitch from ETSU pitcher Madison Ogle. Blanco then recorded a two-RBI single in the same at-bat to make the score 6-3, which ultimately held when UTC pitcher Cori Jennings closed the door in the bottom half of the inning.

In the bottom of the first, ETSU’s Knoetze registered the first hit of the ballgame with a single down the left field line. After advancing to second on a sacrifice bunt from senior Bethany Cowart, Kelsey Smith drove in Knoetze with a single to right field.

The 1-0 ETSU lead would last until the top of the fourth inning when Robles ripped a three-run shot to left field. Her go-ahead homer was set up by Blanco and Amanda Beltran, who chipped in consecutive base hits.

ETSU mounted an offensive push with two outs in the bottom of the sixth frame. The Bucs used base hits from Samantha Carpenter and Knoetze to set up an RBI single for Cowart. Jennings then walked two batters in a row and forced Knoetze across the plate to tie the contest at 3-all. The UTC left-hander did ultimately work out of the bases-loaded jam by forcing a Smith fly out, setting the stage for the Mocs’ well-timed seventh-inning run.

Jennings was credited with the complete-game win. Ogle, who also tossed all seven innings, took the loss for the Bucs.

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