Stephen F. Austin
Central Arkansas
SFA Splits With Bears
4/30/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 30, 2011
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - The Stephen F. Austin Ladyjack softball team got a walk-off win in the opener, then dropped Game 2 for a split in the series-opening doubleheader with Central Arkansas Saturday at SFA Field. The Ladyjacks took a 5-4 verdict in Game 1 but dropped a 5-0 decision in the second game.
SFA moves to 13-33 on the year with an 8-18 record in Southland Conference play, while the Bears go to 23-29 with a 9-17 league mark.
Nicole Wooten drove in the game-winning run in the opener. With two out and the bases loaded, the singled to left field on a 3-2 pitch to score Charlotte Singleton from third. The win gave SFA starter Carlie Thomas her third victory in her last four starting appearances.
The freshman pitcher went all seven innings, allowing three earned runs on seven hits and three walks. Thomas (8-10) struck out two.
Central Arkansas jumped out to an early lead on Kasey Britt's two-run homer in the top of the first.
The Ladyjacks got a run back in the bottom of the frame. Amber Price got a two-out single through the left side, then scored from second on Bethany Brown's flare into short left-center.
SFA tied the score in the third when Elizabeth Arana scored from third on a sacrifice fly in foul territory down the left-field line off Price's bat. Arana had led off with a single, then moved to third on a double to the gap in right-center by Lauren Luetge. The Ladyjacks would go on to load the bases with one out, as Cadie Weaver singled to left and Brown was hit by a pitch. But the next two batters fouled out in order to end the inning.
SFA took a two-run lead in the next inning on RBI doubles by Arana and Amber Price.
The Bears answered with a run in the sixth to make it a 4-3 game. Tarra Underhill doubled to left field with two out, scoring Britt. But Wooten delivered a strong throw from the fence, and Brown provided the relay from shortstop to nail Katie McGregor at the plate for the final out of the inning.
UCA tied the scored in the top of the seventh on an RBI double by Melissa Bryant.
Singleton started the decisive rally in the bottom half with a two-out infield single. Krista Hallmark followed with a walk, then Lacy Liles reached on an error to load the bases. That brought Wooten to the plate. After a 10-pitch at-bat that saw her foul off five pitches with two strikes, she delivered the game-winner.
Price and Weaver each went 2-for-3, and Arana was 2-for-4 to lead the Ladyjacks at the plate. Luetge, Brown, Singleton, Liles and Wooten all hit safely once.
Offense proved harder to come by for the Ladyjacks in the second game. UCA starter Cami Newsome went the distance, throwing a one-hit shutout with five strikeouts.
SFA starter Monika Covington held the Bears off the scoreboard through the first four-and-two-thirds innings, but Britt hit her second home run of the day - and seventh of her last eight games - with two down in the fifth to give UCA a 2-0 lead.
The Bears added three insurance runs in the seventh to set the final count. Preslie Long scored the first one on an illegal pitch. Then, Ashlynn Tovar scored on a single to right by Kelley Martino. Britt scored on a fielding error during the same play.
Covington (5-18) was charged three earned runs on six hits and three walks. She struck out five.
Luetge's single through the right side stood as SFA's lone hit of the contest.
The series will conclude Sunday with a single game scheduled for noon at SFA Field.
-- SFA --
