UTC Advances to Finals on Fuzzard Walk-Off Home Run

#1 Chattanooga 3, #7 Samford 2

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. ? Chattanooga first baseman Michelle Fuzzard hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to lead the top-seeded Lady Mocs to a 3-2 victory over the No. 7 seed Samford Bulldogs to earn a spot in the championship game of the 2009 Southern Conference Softball Championship.

With the score tied at two entering the bottom of the seventh, Fuzzard was the first UTC player to step to the plate. The sophomore took an Amanda Barrs pitch over the left field fence to seal the game for the Lady Mocs.

With the win, Chattanooga (29-22) will await the winner of the Samford-Georgia Southern game, which will be played at 11 a.m. The championship game will begin at 1:30 p.m. A final game could be played 30 minutes after the 1:30 game concludes if necessary.

Chattanooga reliever Kandice Irwin (9-10) picked up the win following a two-inning, one hit performance. Starter Brooke Loudermilk pitched the first five innings, giving up two runs, before giving way to Irwin. Samford reliever Barrs (5-14) took the loss after giving up the Fuzzard home run. Bulldogs’ pitcher Stephanie Royall pitched a solid 4.1 innings giving up a run and three hits before Robyn Harmon relieved her.

Chattanooga scored the first run of the game in the second inning off a Tiffany Baker solo home run. The Bulldogs answered back in the third, scoring a pair of runs. Whitney Terry got on base after an error and eventually scored on a wild pitch. Later in the inning, Kylie Harmon doubled to center field, driving in Jessica Owens. The Lady Mocs notched the game at two in the fifth when Lyndsey Stiles was driven in by Baker, who reached on a fielder’s choice.

#4 Georgia Southern 9, #6 UNC Greensboro 2

SLIDESHOW

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. ? Fourth-seeded Georgia Southern clubbed three home runs among its 12 hits to eliminate No. 6 seed UNC Greensboro from the Southern Conference Softball Championship on Friday, 9-2.

The Spartans finished the season with a 26-33 mark.

Georgia Southern (28-24) blew open a 3-1 game with a five-run fifth inning, sending seven batters to the plate. After Michelle Beasley and Nina Iduate hit one-out singles and moved up on a wild pitch, SoCon Freshman of the Year Marie Fogle dropped down a perfect safety squeeze bunt to score Beasley. Robyne Siliga followed with an RBI single to score Iduate, and one out later, Sam Russo lifted a three-run home run to right to make it 8-1.

The Eagles jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, as Fogle drew a one-out walk and Siliga belted a two-run home run to center field. Megen Smith led off the second inning with a home run of her own to left center to make it a 3-0 game.

UNCG got a run back in the bottom of the third inning, as Laura Olenderski dropped a bloop single into shallow left and Ausley roped a double to the gap in left center to plate Olenderski with the Spartans’ first run.

The Spartans added another run in the bottom of the sixth inning, with Jewett dropping in a bloop single down the left field line. A wild pitch moved her second, but Georgia Southern starter Kristan Glover got a pair of groundouts for the first two outs. Glover would not escape the inning unscathed, however, as Kaitlin Merkt followed with a sharp single to left to score Jewett. Leslie Furness drew an eight-pitch walk to put runners on first and second, but Glover got a strikeout to end the frame and strand a pair of Spartans.

Russo added an RBI single in the top of the seventh for the final margin. She finished the game 3-for-4 with four RBI for the Eagles. Brittany Ausley and Jordan Jewett had two hits each for UNCG.

Glover improved to 8-4 on the season, allowing two runs on seven hits and a walk in seven innings. SoCon Pitcher of the Year Brianna Streetmon worked around a one-out double from Ausley in the seventh to nail down the win.

Amber Harrell (10-13) took the loss, snapping her five-game winning streak. She allowed three runs on two hits and a walk in two innings. Hannah Angel allowed five runs on five hits in three innings, while freshman Cory Mattson allowed a run on five hits in two innings.

#4 Georgia Southern 1, #3 Appalachian State 0

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. ? Georgia Southern pitcher Brianna Streetmon pitched a three-hit shutout to lead the No. 4 seed Eagles to a 1-0 victory over the Appalachian State Mountaineers on day two of the 2009 Southern Conference Softball Championship.

With the win Georgia Southern (27-24) advances to face No. 6 seed UNC Greensboro at 2:15 p.m., on field #3 at Warner Park. Appalachian State’s season ends at 26-29.

Streetmon (16-10) picked up the win after fanning eight batters against only one walk. Appalachian State’s Kayla Richardson (14-17) suffered the loss despite allowing only four hits and not allowing an earned run the entire championship.

Georgia Southern scored what proved to be the winning run in the bottom of the first. Senior Amanda Hall reached first on a fielder’s choice driving in junior Nina Iduate for the 1-0 Eagles’ lead. Later in the inning, GSU’s Sam Russo flied out to centerfield for what appeared to be a sacrifice fly bringing in freshman Marie Fogle. However, Fogle left for home before the ball was caught thus making her out, which ended the inning for the Eagles.

#6 UNC Greensboro 4, #5 Furman 3

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. ? UNC Greensboro rallied from a three-run first inning deficit to edge Furman 4-3 and eliminate the Paladins on day three of the Southern Conference Softball Championship Friday afternoon at Warner Park.

The Spartans, 26-32, advanced to face Georgia Southern in an elimination game at 2:15 p.m., while Furman concluded its season at 22-29.

Senior Abby Robertson doubled to open the top of the seventh and fellow senior Stephanie Cushing was hit by a pitch to give Furman runners at first and second with nobody out, but UNCG hurler Amber Harrell retired the next three batters to secure the victory for the Spartans.

Furman loaded the bases on three pitches in the first as Stephanie Field reached on an error, Robertson singled and Cushing was hit by a Hannah Angel pitch. Two betters later, Brythe Blankenship lined a double into the right-center field gap to clear the bases and give Furman a 3-0 lead.

The Spartans trimmed the margin to 3-2 with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth. M.C. Vercoe doubled to left with one out to start the rally and scored on Kaitlin Merkt’s double to left-center. Alex Emeterio followed with UNCG’s third consecutive double to plate Merkt and chase starter Lana Mackey.

Brittany Ausley opened the fifth with a walk and moved to second on a sacrifice. Vercoe knotted the game at 3-3 with a two-out single up the middle off of reliever Stephanie Mihaly and scored when Emeterio delivered a two-out triple to left-center off of Mackey.

Harrell earned the win to improve to 10-12 on the season. She held Furman to just two hits in three and two-thirds innings of work. Emeterio triggered the Spartan offense going 3-for-3 with a double and triple. Vercoe went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs.

Mihaly (8-6) suffered the loss for Furman after allowing two runs on a hit and two walks in one and one-third innings of work. Mackey allowed two runs on six hits in four and two-thirds innings. She walked two Spartans and fanned six.

Robertson went 2-for-3 with a double in her final game as a Paladin while Blankenship went 1-for-4 with three RBIs.

UTC Advances to Finals on Fuzzard Walk-Off Home Run

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