Furman, Mercer and Samford advance Thursday

Paladins eliminate Catamounts in Thursday opener

GREENSBORO, N.C. – No. 2 seed Furman stayed alive in the 2016 Southern Conference Softball Championship on Thursday, besting third-seeded Western Carolina 7-4 at UNCG Softball Stadium in Greensboro, N.C. The Paladins move to 30-26 on the year, while the Catamounts conclude the season with a 33-24 mark.

Furman will advance to play in the 5:30 p.m. contest on Thursday, which will pit the Paladins against No. 4 seed UNCG.

Junior Elise Smith was 2-for-4 with four RBIs to lead the Paladins, and sophomore pitcher Lindsey Bert, who relieved freshman Emily Demonte, allowed only one hit and no runs in four innings of work. She fanned five Catamount batters while in the circle.

Courtney Price, a junior outfielder, recorded the only multi-hit effort for the Catamounts. She was 2-for-2 and earned a walk in the contest.

Smith cranked a solo home run in the top of the second for the game’s first run. Her solo shot was followed by an Emma Ogburn single and a Taylor Collins double. With two runners in scoring position, Western Carolina right-hander Taylor Sigmon worked out of the jam by producing a groundout.

In the bottom half of the inning, Collins made a spectacular leaping grab in left field to rob WCU’s Hunter Gibbons of a home run and preserve a 1-0 score. The Catamounts did manage to send two across the plate later in the frame after Courtney Price earned a walk and advanced to third base on a Karley Harkey double. Madison Armstrong, an all-freshman selection, scored Price on a sacrifice fly, and Harkey scored courtesy an RBI single off the bat of Amber Kimrey one batter later.

Smith helped the Paladins seize the lead again in the top of the third, launching a three-RBI double off the right field wall to give her squad a 4-2 advantage.

Freshman Emily Demonte tossed a three up, three down bottom half of the inning, and Furman added two more runs during a busy top half of the fourth on a Candace Johnson two-RBI single.

The Paladins tacked on an insurance run in the top of the sixth after shortstop Sieara Bishop singled and Bert drove her home with a single of her own.

Collins provided an exclamation point to the Furman victory by ending the game with a sliding grab in center field.

Bert earned the win for Furman, while Western Carolina senior Taylor Sigmon, who split time with junior Courtney Buchanan in the circle, was tagged with the loss.

 

Hanson tosses no-hitter as Samford beats UNCG, 3-0

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Southern Conference Pitcher of the Year Mollie Hanson tossed a no-hitter at the SoCon Softball Championship on Thursday, as top-seeded Samford earned a 3-0 win over No. 4 seed UNCG at UNCG Softball Stadium in Greensboro, N.C. Hanson’s no-hitter, which required only 61 pitches, marked the third seven-inning no-hitter in SoCon tournament history, with all three having come in the last three years.

The Bulldogs improve to 38-18 on the season, while UNCG drops to 33-25. Samford will face No. 7 seed Mercer on Thursday at noon. The Spartans are set to take on second-seeded Furman at 5:30 p.m. in a must-win scenario.

Hanson, a redshirt senior, registered four strikeouts en route to her 21st win of the season and the second seven-inning no-hitter of her career. Her first came in 2013 and was also against UNCG.

UNCG sophomore Alicia Bazonski kept the Spartans in the game early on, tossing three scoreless innings to start the game. That changed in the top of the fourth inning, though, when Samford catcher Abby Sweeney was hit by a pitch and second baseman Abbie Miranda sent a two-run homer over the left field fence. 

Miranda blasted a solo shot in the bottom of the sixth inning to give the Bulldogs a 3-0 advantage following a scoreless fifth frame. Hanson then polished off her no-hitter by forcing a ground out and a fly out and striking out the Spartans’ Nicole Thomas to punctuate her historic performance.

A fielding error in the top of the first inning was the only blemish between Hanson and a perfect game.

Bazonski allowed five hits and two earned runs in 4 1/3 innings of work. Freshman of the Year Stephanie Bryden replaced her on the mound for an inning and a half, fanning two Samford batters as she worked out of a jam in the bottom of the fifth.

 

Mercer uses three-run seventh inning to advance to semifinals

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Seventh-seeded Mercer continued its improbable run in the 2016 Southern Conference Softball Championship on Thursday, beating No. 6 seed Chattanooga 7-4 at UNCG Softball Stadium in Greensboro, N.C. The Bears improve to 23-33, while the Mocs fall to 29-28.

Mercer will challenge top-seeded Samford at noon on Friday. The Mocs will play again Thursday at 8 p.m. against No. 5 seed ETSU.

Sophomore Meghan Rud was 2-for-4 with two RBIs on the day for the Bears. Right-hander Megan Bilgri earned the win, tossing seven innings, logging three strikeouts and allowing four earned runs.

The Bears separated from the Mocs by ringing up three runs in a topsy-turvy seventh inning. Emma Andrew sparked Mercer’s bats by tallying single to start the frame. After a sacrifice bunt from  junior outfielder Taylor Miller to advance Andrew, Rud earned a bunt single and stole second base. Catcher Natalie Shiver then walked to load the bases. Taylor Rodgers put the ball in play in the next at-bat, and Chattanooga third baseman Ashley Connor hit Andrew’s helmet in an attempt to get a force out at home. The error allowed Andrew and Rud to score. Freshman Shaila Warren scored Shiver with a single later in the inning, giving Mercer a 7-4 lead it would not relinquish.

Chattanooga scored the first run of the game in the bottom of the first. Alyssa Taylor notched the Mocs’ first hit by doubling to center field and then scored on an Ashley Conner double.

Jennings and Bilgri combined for two scoreless innings in the second and third frames, and after the Bears failed to get anything going in the top of the fourth, freshman Jordan Fortel went yard to right field for a 2-0 advantage.

Mercer finally got on the board in the fifth inning. Freshman Lindsay Boynton, pinch hitting for Miller, walked to load the bases. Moments later, Rud slapped an RBI single to right field, scoring Kaytlin Haney and Catie Josselet to tie the ballgame at 2-2.

Both teams exchanged a pair of runs in the sixth inning. Sophomore Quirisa Mauga hit a go-ahead two-run homer to center field in the top half. Another Mocs freshman, Amanda Beltran, clubbed her third home run of the tournament in the bottom half to match Mauga’s two-run blast.

Sophomore Cori Jennings threw seven innings for UTC and was given the loss.

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