GREENSBORO, NC Senior Mary Greenway set a new single-season stolen bases record as the UNC Greensboro softball team took a league doubleheader from Furman on Saturday afternoon at UNCG Softball Stadium. The Spartans used a walk off single to take game one, 2-1 in extra innings and took the late game, 8-3.
UNCG (20-31, 6-11 SoCon) was led by Mary Catherine Vercoe and Brittany Ausley. The pair both posted a .667 batting average on the afternoon after going 4-of-6 from the plate. Vercoe posted a 1.167 slugging percentage to go with three RBI, three runs scored and one home run. Ausley extended her hitting streak to six games while recording one run and one triple.
Greenway was a perfect 8-of-8 on stolen base attempts and became UNCG's single-season record holder with 46 stolen bases on the season, breaking her previous record of 41 set last season. She currently has 81 career stolen bases and is second all-time at UNCG.
Pitchers Hannah Angel and Amber Harrell combined for the two wins. Angel extended her win streak to three games after allowing one run on eight hits in 8.0 innings of work in the first game. Harrell picked up her 10th win of the season in the late game after allowing three runs on five hits in 7.0 innings. Both pitchers recorded six strikeouts.
The first game was scoreless heading into the top of the fifth inning before Furman took the early lead. The Paladins got a leadoff single from Kate Termini who advanced to second base with a sacrifice bunt from Colleen Harrison.
Bethany Ullrich was hit by a pitch to put two runners on base and Furman loaded the bases with a single to left field from Katie Michaels. Meredith Mielke hit an RBI single to left field to give Furman the early 1-0 lead.
UNCG responded with a home run from Vercoe in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game 1-1. Ausley hit her first triple of the season in the next at bat but the inning ended with a fly out to centerfield. The game headed into extra innings and Furman threatened to score first after pitcher Lana Mackey singled to left field and was moved two bases with back-to-back sacrifice bunts but the inning ended with a pop up to the short stop.
The Spartans were able to put a runner on early when Lyndsay Mouse was hit by a pitch. The second baseman then stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch from Mackey. Vercoe showcased her hitting prowess with a walk off single to left field giving UNCG the victory.
In the night cap Furman took the early lead 2-0 lead with runs from Mileke and Cushing but the Spartans rallied and added four runs in the home half of the inning to take the 4-2 lead. UNCG got a leadoff single from Greenway who then stole second and third base before being plated with a RBI triple from Mouse.
Mouse added another run after scoring on a wild pitch before runs from Vercoe and Ausley. With the Spartans holding a 5-2 advantage, three runs in the bottom of the fourth sealed the win. Greenway, who led off four innings, hit a single to third base and stole both second and third base. She was plated with a three-RBI double from Miller which also scored Vercoe and Kailtin Merkt.
Furman added one more score in the fifth but couldn't rally giving the Spartans their 20th win of the season and their sixth Southern Conference victory.
The teams will close out the series on Sunday with a single game scheduled for a 1 pm start. The Spartans will honor seniors Mary Greenway and Brandi Schnute in a short ceremony prior to the game.
AGATE:
Game One
Furman.............. 000 010 00 - 1 8 0 (21-29, 8-11 SoCon)
UNC Greensboro...... 000 001 01 - 2 5 2 (19-31, 5-11 SoCon)
Pitchers: Furman - Lana Mackey. UNC Greensboro - Hannah Angel.
Win-Hannah Angel(10-13) Loss-Lana Mackey(16-23) T-1:58 A-0
HR UNCG - MaryCatherine Vercoe.
Game Two
Furman.............. 200 010 0 - 3 5 1 (21-30, 8-12 SoCon)
UNC Greensboro...... 410 300 X - 8 10 1 (20-31, 6-11 SoCon)
Pitchers: Furman - Bethany Ullrich; Lana Mackey(1). UNC Greensboro - Amber Harrell.
Win-Amber Harrell(10-17) Loss-Bethany Ullrich(5-7) T-2:00 A-111
- UNCG -
