CHATTANOOGA, TN – Hannah Angel limited No. 3 seed Appalachian State to just four hits, but the Mountaineers pushed across a pair of early runs to take a 2-0 win over sixth-seeded UNC Greensboro in the opening round of the Southern Conference Softball Championship on Thursday.
Freshman Jordan Jewett had a pair of hits for UNCG (24-32).
The Mountaineers (26-27) got on the board in the first inning without the benefit of a hit. Angel walked three of the first four ASU batters to load the bases, and Brittany Gaston lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to score Sarah Rappe with the first run of the day.
Appalachian State made it a 2-0 game in the third, when Katie Boyd hit her SoCon-leading 17th home run of the year, a towering solo shot out to center.
The Spartans struggled to find their offense against All-Southern Conference First Team pitcher Kayla Richardson, managing just five hits and not getting a runner past second.
Jewett hit a two-out double to the gap in left center in the top of the first inning, but she would be stranded there. Richardson sat the side down in order in both the second and third innings, but Jewett's single up the middle in the top of the fourth snapped a string of eight straight UNCG batters retired by Richardson.
ASU threatened to add on in the bottom half the fourth, getting a leadoff bloop single from Morgan Price and a one-out double from Ashley Gaston that found the gap in left center. Price attempted to score from first on the play, but UNCG center fielder Laura Olenderski made a perfect throw to All-Southern Conference Second Team shortstop Kaitlin Merkt, who fired a strike home to Leslie Furness to nail Price at the plate and keep the score 2-0.
That was the last hit Angel (13-13) would allow, and an intentional walk to Boyd in the fifth accounted for the Mountaineers' final base runner.
Meanwhile, the Spartans threatened often in the final two innings, but could never make a dent in the scoreboard. Each of UNCG's five batters in the fifth inning reached base, but the Mountaineers erased three runners on fielder's choices.
Olenderski led off with a bunt single, but Boyd made and excellent stop at third on a Brittany Ausley grounder and threw over to second in time to nip Olenderski. Lyndsay Mouse dropped in a bloop single in shallow left to put runners at first and second with just one out, but Ausley was erased at third and Jewett at second as Richardson induced two more groundballs to get out of the jam.
The Spartans got a leadoff single from Mary Catherine Vercoe to lead off the seventh, but Richardson retired Merkt and Emily Akiyama on consecutive flyouts to left to bring up pinch-hitter Whitney Sirois with the game on the line. Sirois scalded what appeared to be a single to right field, but Brittany Gaston got to it quickly and fired to first to end the game on the 9-3 putout.
Richardson improved to 14-16 on the season, allowing five hits and striking out four in seven innings. Angel allowed two runs on four hits and four walks in six innings.
The Spartans will face either No. 2 seed College of Charleston or No. 7 seed Samford in an elimination game at 5 p.m.
AGATE
Appalachian State 2, UNC Greensboro 0 (May 07, 2009 at Chattanooga, Tenn.)
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UNC Greensboro...... 000 000 0 - 0 5 0 (24-32)
Appalachian State... 101 000 X - 2 4 0 (26-27)
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Pitchers: UNC Greensboro - Hannah Angel and Leslie Furness. Appalachian State - Kayla Richardson and Michelle Lighton.
Win-Kayla Richardson(14-16) Loss-Hannah Angel(13-13) T-1:27 A-94
HR ASU - Katie Boyd (17).
- UNCG -
