March 26, 2011

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- The Samford softball team swept its doubleheader with Western Carolina Saturday afternoon to earn its third and fourth Southern Conference wins of the season. The Bulldogs used four home runs in the first game to take a 12-5 win before coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the second game to win, 4-3.

The Bulldogs are now 7-24 overall and 4-4 in league play. The Catamounts fall to 13-19 overall and 0-8 in the SoCon.

In the first game, the Bulldogs jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Robyn Harmon led off with a home run to right field. Brianna Chambers popped up for the first out, but Alex Adams followed with a home run to left field to give Samford the two-run advantage. The Bulldogs added another run in the second inning when Kayla Shaffer scored from third on a sacrifice bunt by Allison Reynolds.

Samford held Western Carolina scoreless for the third straight inning and the Bulldogs made it a 5-0 ball game when Amanda Jordan hit a two-run homer in the second at-bat in the bottom of the third.

The Catamounts broke up the shutout in the fourth inning, plating two runs on a home run by Shemika Scotton. WCU then blanked Samford in the bottom of the inning before tying the game in the top of the fifth with an RBI double by Kelly Braman and a two-run double by Scotton.

However, Samford moved back ahead in the bottom of the fifth, plating seven runs to take a 12-5 lead. Shaffer brought in the first run on a single before Aaren Fisher hit a grand slam to give the Bulldogs a 9-5 advantage. Jordan hit a sacrifice fly to score Harmon and then Chambers scored the final run on a fielder's choice.

Adams led the Bulldogs in game one, going 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI. Lakan Smith followed with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate and an RBI, which scored the final run. Harmon went 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI while Jordan was 1-for-3 with a run and three RBI. Shaffer went 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI while Arica Dykes went 2-for-2 with a run. Fisher's only hit was her grand slam in the fifth inning while Bobrowski also was 1-for-1.

Kayla Burris (4-10) earned the win and pitched a complete game, giving up five earned runs on 12 hits with 10 strikeouts and one walk.

Braman led the Catamounts, going 2-for-3 with two runs and an RBI while Scotton followed with a 2-for-4 performance at the plate along with a run and four RBI. Jordan Fulton also went 2-for-5 with a run while Haley Pace was 2-for-4. Makenzi McAteer, Katie King and Amber Steinhardt also had a hit for WCU.

Katie King started the game and gave up four earned runs on seven hits in two innings. She also recorded the Catamounts' only strikeout. Bekah Burkett (0-4) took the loss after giving up five earned runs on seven hits in the third and fourth innings. Steinhardt pitched the final two innings, giving up one earned run on two hits.

In game two, WCU jumped on top, 3-0, before Samford could score its first run. The Catamounts plated their first run on an RBI single by McAteer in the top of the second inning. WCU added two more in the top of the fourth inning, one on a one-out solo home run by Morgan Wyatt and another on a two-out fielding error by Jordan.

The Bulldogs finally got on the board in the bottom of the fourth inning with a sacrifice fly by Whitney Terry, with runners on second and third, that drove in Madeline Baker. Samford cut the Catamount lead to 3-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning when Adams singled with runners on the corners to drive in Chambers from third.

Both teams went scoreless in the sixth inning and Samford retired WCU in the top of the seventh, only allowing two hits. In the bottom of the seventh, with one out and two runners on, Adams hit a walk-off double to left-center field to drive in the tying run, Shaffer, and the winning run, Harmon.

Shaffer led the Bulldogs in game two, going 3-for-4 with one run while Adams followed with a 3-for-4 performance and three RBI. Harmon, Jordan and Chambers each had a hit for the Bulldogs while Harmon, Baker and Chambers also each scored a run.

Harmon (1-8) earned her first win of the season in the circle with a complete-game performance. Harmon gave up just two earned runs on seven hits, struck out six batters and allowed three walks.

McAteer led the Catamounts, going 2-for-3 with a run, while Braman went 2-for-4. Wyatt was 1-for-2 with two runs and an RBI while Pace and Scotton each had a hit for WCU as well. King (6-9) took the loss for the Catamounts, giving up four runs on eight hits in 6.2 innings. She struck out seven batters and walked one. Steinhardt pitched the final one-third inning, giving up just one hit.

The Bulldogs will go for the series sweep Sunday as they play a single game at 1 p.m. CT at Bulldog Field. Live video streaming will be available on www.samfordsports.com and a full recap and final statistics will also be posted upon the conclusion of the game.