ANDERSON, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken softball team split a pair of hard-fought games at Anderson, winning 2-1 in 10 innings before falling 6-5 in the nightcap.
The Pacers are now 7-3 on the season.
In game one, head coach
Jaclin Poole's team kept the Trojans off the board in the first inning. With two on via walks and both in scoring position due to a wild pitch,
Payton Baker forced a groundout to end the threat.
USC Aiken broke through with a run in the second stanza.
Skylar Morley walked with one away and quickly swiped second base. Her speed allowed her to score easily on
Tara McGee's RBI double to right field.
The Pacers had an opportunity to push the score to 2-0 in the second inning as
Jena Dewalt laid down a bunt single and promptly stole second base. However, back-to-back outs ended the threat.
AU tied the game with an unearned run in the bottom of the third inning. The score would remain the same through nine innings. In the top of the 10
th,
Madison Rogers came in as a pinch runner for
Chloe Phillips, who was placed on second base for the international tiebreaker rule. Rogers moved to third on
Ella Stone's sacrifice bunt.
Taylor Butts reached on a fielder's choice that plated Rogers for a 2-1 advantage.
Despite AU having a runner on second base to start the bottom of the 10
th, Baker continued her tremendous pitching. She got the first out with a sacrifice bunt before striking out a batter. The final out of the stanza occurred with a pop-up to second base.
At the plate, McGee led the way with two hits – a triple and a double – to go along with one RBI. Dewalt had the team's other hit while Butts drove in a run. Morley and Rogers crossed home in the victory.
In the circle, Baker gave up one unearned run on a mere three hits. She struck out 10 and walked just four in the 10-inning victory.
In game two, USC Aiken took a 1-0 lead in the second frame. With one down,
Mallory Shaver roped a single down the left field line and moved to third on Dewalt's double down the right field line.
Chloe Phillips lofted a pitch into left field, allowing Shaver to race home for the one-score advantage.
The Trojans struck for a run in the second and another in the third but Poole's team answered I the fourth. With one away, Shaver singled to left field and moved to third on a
Chloe Phillips double to right center field. Both came home on Stone's double to the gap in left center field.
AU responded with two runs in the bottom of the fifth for a 4-3 lead. The home squad tacked on a run in the sixth but USC Aiken responded in its last at bat.
With one away, Stone walked.
Cameron Greene came in as a pinch hitter and crushed a pitch to right center field, knotting the contest at 5-5. However, the Trojans plated a run in the seventh to secure the win.
For the game, Shaver led the two with two hits and scored twice. Greene and Stone had two RBI apiece while
Chloe Phillips had one RBI. Greene,
Chloe Phillips and Stone all crossed home.
In the circle,
Lakyn Phillips got the starting nod and went 5.2 innings. She had seven strikeouts in the game.
Kate Newberry worked two-thirds of a frame and Baker pitched one-third of an inning.
The Pacers return to action Saturday, Feb. 24 when they host Converse for a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.
