March 15, 2007

Box Score

CULLOWHEE, N.C. - Western Carolina University softball (7-15) split its doubleheader with North Carolina A&T (10-17) on Thursday at the Catamount Complex. The Catamounts dropped the first game 5-2 but came back with a vengeance in game two defeating the Aggies 8-3 in the nightcap.

Western Carolina was one hit shy of tying its season-high with 15 hits in the second game against North Carolina A&T, as the club had 16 hits against Marshall on February 23.

Sophomore Savannah Filley was productive on both sides of the plate as she made her fourth appearance on the mound and picked up her second win of the season, improving to 2-4 on the year. She tossed 5.1 innings allowing three runs on seven hits. The Crossville, Tennessee native also hit her second homerun of the season, a three-run blast, to spark a four-run first inning for the team.

Sophomore Lauren Ross came into the game for Filley in the sixth inning and tossed 1.2 innings of scoreless ball to pick up the save. It was her first save of the year.

Jamie Swank led off the four-run first inning explosion when her double to centerfield scored Serena Smith.

North Carolina A&T got a run back with one swing of the bat when Lillian Bullock hit a solo homerun for the Aggies first score of the game.

Western Carolina tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the second inning. Smith led off the inning with a double and she scored off and RBI single by Stephanie Beatty. Back-to-back singles by Filley and Beth Hauser loaded the bases and an RBI single by Mollie Fowler plated Beatty.

The Aggies would come back in the top of the third and add a run thanks to an RBI single by Jessie Larson.

A triple by Hauser set up Western Carolina's seventh run of the game in the fourth inning. She scored thanks to a sacrifice fly by Tatum Hargett.

Both teams scored a run in the sixth inning. North Carolina A&T picked up a run off a Western Carolina error. Western Carolina also scored off an error after Beatty doubled and then scored when Hargett singled to the outfield and the ball was booted.

Hauser and Smith each had three hits in the game and Smith also scored two runs.

North Carolina A&T shut out Western Carolina for six innings before the Catamounts rallied to score two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning in the first game. With one out, Smith reached off an Aggies error and a two out RBI single by Filley scored Smith. Hauser's RBI single scored Filley for the second run of the game.

The Aggies scored two runs in the third, two in the fifth and on run in the seventh. Catamount pitcher Mendy McKenzie made her 11th start of the season and takes the loss. She falls to 3-8 on the season going seven innings allowing five runs on eight hits and striking out five.

Western Carolina continues its home stand by hosting the Second Annual Best Western Catamount Classic. All 10 games of the three-day event will be played at WCU's on-campus Catamount Softball Complex. Inaugural tournament champion, UNC Wilmington, returns to defend their 2006 crown and will be joined by a repeat visit from the Detroit Titans. The Radford Highlanders from the Big South will join the host Catamounts, who were the tourney runners-up to the Seahawks in '06, to round out the four-team field.

This year's tournament features a different look as each team is guaranteed to play five games. After playing each other through Friday and Saturday's round-robin format, the teams will be seeded for Saturday night's contests with the top seed facing the fourth, and two versus three. A true one-through-four finishing order will be determined with consolation and championship games to be played on Sunday.