April 16, 2008

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Samford University softball team defeated the Birmingham-Southern Panthers for a fifth-consecutive time Wednesday as the Bulldogs rallied for a 2-1 victory at the BSC Softball Park. Samford's Kristy Lawrence doubled off the wall in the sixth inning to drive in the game-winning run.

"It was good to win another close game," said Samford head coach Beanie Ketcham. "I think that the difference in our team now is that they are starting to believe that they can do it. We are playing with a lot of confidence now and our pitchers are doing a good job of keeping us close in games."

With the victory, Samford (16-24) extended its winning streak against Birmingham-Southern (25-22) to five straight games. The Bulldogs also increased their advantage in the all-time series versus the Panthers to 8-6.

Samford, which has won two straight games and three of its last four, has not been defeated by Birmingham-Southern since early in the 2006 season.

With the defeat, the Panthers suffered their fifth-consecutive loss. Birmingham-Southern's last win occurred April 8 against Mobile University. The Panthers' offense has been struggling as of late and they haven't scored an earned run since April 8.

Samford's Lawrence drove in the game-winning run in the top of the sixth inning.

With two outs and Katie England at first base, Lawrence drilled a 1-1 rise ball high over the centerfielder's head. Immediately following contact, the ball looked as if it would have enough distance to clear the wall, but it ended up caroming high off the border.

England, the Bulldogs' starting third baseman, scored the game-winning run from first base on Lawrence's double. She reached base by drawing a walk.

"We were able to get a couple of key hits today and that's what we needed," Ketcham said. "Kristy's hit was huge and I kind of thought that she might do well against their pitcher (Bethney Reynoldson). On the game-winning hit, I gave her a hit-and-run and she banged it to the fence. It was a great hit and it ended up winning the game for us."

Samford's Kayla Burris (6-7) picked up the victory in the circle and tallied five strikeouts. She came on in relief of starting pitcher Amanda Barrs and hurled the final five innings of the game. Burris didn't allow a run in the game and only allowed a pair of Panther baserunners.

The victory was Burris' second win against Birmingham-Southern this season. Earlier this year, Samford picked up a 7-1 victory over the Panthers and Burris recorded a season-high nine strikeouts.

"Kayla has done a great job against Birmingham-Southern all year long," Ketcham said. "I think that her inside stuff is really effective against them and that's the main reason that she's been successful in the series. She's been able to tie them up inside and then hit the outside corner to strike them out."

Offensively, Samford only finished with four hits. The Bulldogs' Jessica Owens was 1-for-4 with an RBI, while Kylie Harmon turned in a 1-for-2 performance with a run scored. Senior Emily Deaux was also 1-for-3 on Wednesday.

Birmingham-Southern's Bethney Reynoldson (16-10) was saddled with the tough-luck losses despite finishing with 13 strikeouts. She pitched the entire game for the Panthers and only allowed one earned run on four hits.

"Their pitcher was tough," said Ketcham. "She has some outstanding numbers this season and I knew that there would be a chance that we would struggle against her. She already has over 225 strikeouts this season and she is really close to setting their all-time record, so I knew that if she was on, we would probably struggle a little bit at the plate."

Birmingham-Southern jumped out to the early lead in the game by scoring an unearned run in the bottom of the third inning. Samford then tied the matchup at 1-1 in the top of the fifth frame when Owens drove in Harmon from third base. The RBI was Owens' fifth of the season.

The Samford University softball team will next be in action Saturday at 1 p.m., as the Bulldogs begin a key Ohio Valley Conference series against the defending conference champion Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles at Bulldog Field.

The teams will play a doubleheader Saturday followed by the series finale Sunday at 1 p.m.

Sunday's game will be Samford's final home contest of the 2008 season and fans are urged to arrive 15 minutes early as the Softball Program recognizes the following Bulldog seniors: Emily Deaux, Tracey Deaux and Jeslyn Metcalf with a special "Senior Day" presentation.