GAME 1 BOX SCORE (PDF)
GAME 2 BOX SCORE (PDF)
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford softball team split a Southern Conference doubleheader with rival Chattanooga Friday evening at the Samford Softball Field. The Bulldogs took the first game, 15-2 in five innings, before falling in the second game by a score of 11-6.
In game one for Samford,
Madison Couch went 2-for-3 with a grand slam and four RBI.
Ashlyn Barnes went 2-for-3 with a double, a triple and two RBI.
Shelby Maze went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored.
Lexie Higgins drove in three runs with a home run in a 1-for-1 performance at the plate.
Annalyn Yantis (3-7) pitched the complete 5.0 innings, giving up two runs on three hits to earn the win in the circle for Samford. She struck out three batters in the win, and allowed three walks.
For Chattanooga in the first game, Brook Womack drove in the Mocs' two runs with a home run, going 1-for-2 at the plate. Ashley Conner went 2-for-2 for the Mocs. Allison Swinford (5-9) pitched 3.0 innings, giving up nine runs on nine hits to take the loss in the circle.
After Chattanooga took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning on Womack's homer, Samford took the lead for good with five runs in the bottom of the second inning. Higgins hit a three-run home run to give the Bulldogs a 3-2 lead. Maze later singled to drive in Barnes to make the score 4-2. Maze later scored on a ground out by
Hannah Trombley to push Samford's lead to 5-2.
The Bulldogs added two runs in the bottom of the third inning to make the score 7-2. Barnes tripled down the left-field line to drive in Higgins and
Whitney Hinton for a five-run Samford lead.
Samford exploded for eight runs in the fourth inning to push its lead to 15-2.
Mekhi Mayfield singled to drive in
Kelsey Royalty for the first run of the inning. Couch then hit her grand slam to left field for a 10-run Samford lead. Royalty later grounded out to drive in
Ryan Brzozoski, and Maze and Higgins later scored on an error for a 13-run Samford advantage.
In game two for Samford, Maze went 4-for-4 with two runs scored. Brzozoski went 2-for-3 with two RBI.
Kathryn Jackson and Mayfield drove in two runs each for Samford.
Taylor DeCelles (4-10) pitched 1.2 innings in relief, giving up six runs on five hits to take the loss for the Bulldogs.
Chattanooga was led in game two by Emma Sturdivant, going 3-for-3 with a double and three RBI. Womack and Morgan Kazerooni drove in two runs each, while J.J. Hamil homered in her lone at-bat, driving in three runs. Celie Hudson (6-9) pitched 7.0 innings, giving up six runs on 10 hits to earn the win.
After Samford took an early lead with one run in the bottom of the third inning, Chattanooga plated six runs in the top of the fifth inning to take a 6-1 lead. Samford answered with five runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to knot the score at 6-6.
Chattanooga put the game away with five runs in the top of the seventh inning. Samford was able to get two runners on base in the bottom of the seventh inning, but was unable to push any runs across, ending the game in an 11-6 setback.
With the split, Samford's record moves to 11-25 overall and 2-2 in Southern Conference play. Chattanooga's record moves to 15-21 overall and 1-4 in league games.
The teams will wrap up the series with a single game Sunday. The first pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Samford Softball Field, and admission is FREE!
