Box Score SPARTANBURG, S.C.--The eighth-seeded USC Aiken Lady Pacers (31-27) exploded for seven runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to overcome a 3-0 deficit and knock off ninth-seeded UNC Pembroke (17-29) 7-3 in the first round of the 2004 Peach Belt Conference Softball Tournament hosted by USC Spartanburg at the 295 Sports Complex. Senior
Jami Cornwell and sophomore
Jayme Durand combined for three extra bases hits and four RBI in the sixth inning.
Entering the tournament, USC Aiken had dropped eight consecutive PBC Tournament contests and were just 7-19 all-time. The Lady Pacers last win came on April 19, 1997 against Lander University.
UNC Pembroke seized the early advantage on an RBI single off the bat of Brookes Musser in the top of the first. The Lady Braves added one more in the fourth on a two-out Wendi Cochran single to center plating Danielle Peters and making it 2-0. Cochran tacked on a sacrifice fly in the sixth to extend the margin to 3-0 as UNCP scored all three of its runs with two outs.
The Lady Pacers, however, came alive in the bottom of the sixth. Down to their final six outs, Cornwell led off the inning with a double. Durand prompted followed that up with her fourth home run of the season to slice the lead to 3-2. Durand's long ball also marked the 31st of the season for the Lady Pacers breaking the school single season team record of 30 set in 1994.
Following a fielder's choice ground out and a fly out,
Brooke McSwain singled to the shortstop to keep the inning alive.
Deidre Simmons delivered a single back up the middle to plate McSwain to knot the game up at 3-3.
Meghan Lynch then drove in two more runs with a single to center field. Cornwell doubled home Lynch and
Kelly Ford, her second two-bagger of the inning, to set the final margin at 7-3.
McSwain went a perfect 3-for-3 with one run scored for USCA. Cornwell was 2-for-3 with two RBI, two doubles, and one run scored. Durand was 1-for-3 with a homer, two RBI, and one run scored while Lynch was 1-for-4 but drove in two RBI.
Debbie Aguiar paced the Lady Braves going 3-for-4 while Peters was 2-for-3 with three runs scored.
On the mound,
JoAnn Jones (13-11) scattered 10 hits and one walk over 6.0 innings allowing three earned runs and striking out five in the win.
Samantha Blair gave up one hit and struck out two of the four batters she faced in the seventh.
Just 12 days after Nicole McCorkle (8-13) shutout and two-hit the Lady Pacers, the UNC Pembroke ace surrendered seven runs, all earned, on nine hits and two walks, striking out seven in 5.2 innings in the loss. Heather Riley allowed one hit in recording the final out of the sixth.
USC Aiken advances to Saturday's second round to meet top-ranked Kennesaw State at 11:00 AM. The number one team in all of Division II, the KSU Owls beat the Lady Pacers on March 28 by the scores of 4-1 and 5-0. UNC Pembroke falls into the losers bracket and will meet the loser of the third-seeded North Florida and sixth-seeded USC Spartanburg game also on Saturday at 11:00 AM.
UNC Pembroke..........100 101 0 - 3 11 1
USC Aiken...................000 007 x - 7 10 1
E - Veglia; McSwain. LOB - UNCP 11; USCA 6. 2B - Cornwell 2(14); McSwain(1). HR - Durand(4). SH - Carnaghi. SF - Cochran. SB - Peters 2; Aguiar.
