BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford softball team swept a pivotal Southern Conference doubleheader against Chattanooga on Alumni Weekend, seizing a 9-4 win in the opener behind a historic power display and rallying for a 6-5 walk-off victory in the nightcap. The Bulldogs captured two critical league wins and moved their winning streak to five games in a row and took their overall record to 14-21 while moving to 4-1 in SoCon play.
Game 1: Chattanooga - 4 | Samford - 9
The series started with Chattanooga jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, capitalizing on a pair of hits and an RBI single working against Samford starter Sara Bond. Samford responded immediately as Katie Campbell launched the first of her three home runs in the bottom of the frame. In the second inning, Addison Smith tied the score with an RBI double.
The turning point arrived in the bottom of the third, when Olivia Shaw and Campbell hit back-to-back solo home runs to put Samford in front for good, 4-2. The Bulldogs continued to flex their power, with Shaw and Campbell connecting for back-to-back home runs again in the sixth—Campbell's third of the game and Shaw's second. The duo combined for five home runs and six RBI, anchoring a lineup that tallied nine extra-base hits and struck out zero times at the plate. Brooke Wildes added two doubles, and Smith delivered a multi-hit effort with a stolen base. In the circle, Sara Bond earned the win over four innings, while Olivia Treece and Reese Hickey secured the final nine outs to seal a 9-4 victory.
Game 2: Chattanooga - 5 | Samford - 6
Chattanooga struck first again in Game 2, jumping ahead 5-0 after two innings behind a three-run homer against Samford starter Makinley Turner. She was making her first start in a month as she recovers from injury. She lasted just 1.2 innings, as she allowed five runs on three hits and four walks, as she knocked off live game rust.
The Bulldogs were held hitless through three frames before Brandy Phillips jump-started the comeback with a solo home run in the fourth. Samford erupted for four runs in the fifth, highlighted by an RBI single from Katie Hart, an RBI double by Joi Hubbard, a sacrifice fly from Shaw, and a game-tying single from Phillips.
With the score still tied in the bottom of the seventh, Hubbard reached and advanced into scoring position on a Shaw single. Campbell then delivered the game-winning single to left, scoring Hubbard and sending the Bulldogs into celebration with a 6-5 walk-off win. Hickey, who had entered in relief in the second and fired 5.1 scoreless innings with four strikeouts, earned the win and held Chattanooga in check to enable the comeback. She has thrown 15-straight scoreless innings dating back to her last four outings as she moved to 3-0 on the season.
The Bulldogs will look for the series sweep tomorrow as they host the Mocs for game three. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.
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