POSTGAME INTERVIEW

BOX SCORE

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The fourth-seeded Samford softball team built a big lead and held on late for a 9-8 win over seventh-seeded Chattanooga in an elimination game in the Southern Conference Tournament Thursday night at Frost Stadium.
 
With the win, Samford improves to 23-35 on the season. The Bulldogs will take on top-seeded UNCG in another elimination game Friday at approximately 11:30 a.m. (CT). Chattanooga ends its season with a record of 15-38.
 
"This was just a fight to the very end," Samford head coach Mandy Burford said. "I'm really proud of this group, they showed a lot of grit in trying to win every inning and executing the little things. Tip your hat to UTC, they came back and fought, at one time it was 9-2 in the bottom of the fifth and they scratched their way back in it. I'm proud of our kids for responding and living to play another day."
 
Shelby Maze went 2-for-4 with a run scored to lead Samford at the plate. The junior tied the school record for single-season hits with 86 so far this season. She ties the mark set by current assistant coach Megan Dowdy in 2015.
 
"Shelby stays consistent," Burford said.  "She's been consistent all year. She leads the nation in hits, I think that's enough said. And it's not necessarily by bunting, it's by hitting, so I'm proud of her for setting the tone at the top."
 
Freshman Kathryn Jackson delivered a two-run home run, going 1-for-3 at the plate. Her homer came in the top of the fourth inning and helped Samford extend its lead.
 
"It's fun to see the freshmen do well like that, just to see the glow in their eye and how excited you are for them," Burford said of Jackson's home run. "I'm happy for Kat. Really, one through nine, anybody could have gotten the big hit, but I'm proud of Kat, that was a big moment."
 
Samford's Madison Couch, Whitney Hinton and Abbie Miranda also drove in one run each for Samford.
 
Jessica Stone (10-6) pitched 5.1 innings, giving up seven runs on 11 hits to earn the win in the circle for Samford. Grey Adams tossed the final 1.2 innings to pick up her first save of the season.
 
Chattanooga was led by Ashley Conner, going 3-for-4 with two home runs and five RBI. J.J. Hamill went 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Emma Sturdivant went 2-for-3 for the Mocs. Celie Hudson (6-11) pitched 4.1 innings, giving up nine runs on six hits to take the loss for Chattanooga.
 
Samford jumped on top first with three runs in the top of the third inning. Hinton singled to drive in Kelsey Royalty for the game's first run. Couch then singled to drive in Maze for a 2-0 Samford lead. Hinton then scored when Abby Sweeney reached base on an error to make the score 3-0.
 
Chattanooga came back with two runs in the bottom of the third inning to cut the Samford lead to 3-2. Hayleigh Weissenbach singled to drive in Hamil and Alyssa Coppinger to bring Chattanooga to within one run.
 
Samford added two runs in the top of the fourth inning to extend its lead to 5-2. Jackson hit a home run to left field with Miranda on base for a three-run Samford lead.
 
The Bulldogs broke the game open with four runs in the top of the fifth inning to make the score 9-2. Royalty drove in two runs and Miranda drove in one in the inning. Sweeney also scored on a wild pitch as Samford took a commanding seven-run lead.
 
Chattanooga came back with four runs of its own in the bottom of the fifth inning to cut the Samford lead to 9-6. Conner hit a grand slam to left field to bring the Mocs to within three runs.
 
The Mocs plated a run in the sixth inning and another in the seventh to cut the lead to 9-8. Hamil doubled to right center to drive in Halie Williamson for the run in the sixth inning. In the seventh inning, Conner hit a solo home run to bring Chattanooga to within one run.
 
The Mocs, however, could get no closer as Samford held on for the 9-8 victory.