DECATUR, Ala. - A pair of solo home runs to left field from
Katelyn Lankford and Kari Davidson helped lift Stillman College to a 3-1 victory over University of Tennessee Southern to complete a split on Day 1 of the Southern States Athletic Conference Softball Championships at Wilson Morgan Park. The win came after a 3-2 loss to Faulkner University in the Tigers' first game of the day.
Stillman advances to the next round Friday morning at 10 a.m. against Point University.
SSAC Player of the Year
Lauren Haskins drew a lead off walk in the bottom of the first, stole second, and eventually scored on a wild pitch to give Stillman a 1-0 lead. Lankford's solo shot came in the second inning to extend the lead.
Allie Toone's RBI single in the top of the third cut Stillman's lead in half, but Davidson answered with a solo homer to left in the bottom of the fourth inning.
UTS threatened in the top of the sixth inning, loading the bases with one out. A ground ball up the middle turned into a 1-2-3 double play turned by
Jasmine Wade,
Anniston Jones and Davidson to end the inning.
Wade (7-3) retired the Firehawks in order with a pair of ground balls to
Madison Bubel at third and a fly ball to Haskins in left field to end the game.
GAME 1: FAULKNER 3, STILLMAN 2
Lauren Haskins wasted little time to help her team in its first game of the tournament, as she tripled to left field to lead off the game. With one out,
Madison Bubel delivered an RBI single to give Stillman a 1-0 lead.
Faulkner tied it in the bottom of the second inning when Ivey Hill scored on an error at second.
Stillman battled each at bat, pushing Faulkner pitcher Katelynn Innis above 80 pitches through three innings. With two outs in the top of the third, Bubel drove the 12th pitch of her at bat for a double to left center field. However she and
Anniston Jones were left stranded when
Carolyn Carter's deep fly ball to center was caught.
Hill then delivered the go-ahead RBI double in the bottom of the third inning as Faulkner took its first lead, 2-1.
The Tigers left seven players on base through five innings, but eventually tied it in the top of the sixth inning. Carter doubled to left center to start the inning, followed by an
Ivey Moreland single to put runners on the corners. Karli Davidson drove a ball to left, but it was caught for a sac fly, scoring Carter, 2-2. One more runner was left on base.
In the bottom of the sixth, Eavie Polk drove in the go-ahead run with one out. Stillman was retired in order in the top of the seventh for the first time in the game.
Lexi McCray (14-4) pitched her 12th complete game of the season for the Tigers, coming up short with three runs allowed, and two earned. She gave up seven hits and walked two.
Inness (9-6) threw 126 pitches in the win, allowing two earned runs, off six hits, two walks and two hit batters.
