March 12, 2011

Game 1 Box Score

Game 2 Box Score

GREENVILLE, S.C. - Western Carolina softball (12-8, 0-2 Southern Conference) was swept by Furman (6-12, 2-0 SoCon) 5-1, 4-3 Saturday at Pepsi Stadium.

The pair of losses halts the Catamounts' four-game winning streak. Western Carolina will try to avoid the sweep to the Paladins when the two teams play a single game Sunday beginning at 1 p.m.

Furman was assisted in the first game by three homeruns. The Paladins ended a scoreless game with back-to-back homeruns, by Lauren Collier and Morgan Hughey, in the bottom of the second inning.

The Catamounts scored their only run of the game in the top of the fourth inning, cutting the Furman lead to one, 2-1. Amber Steinhardt hit a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Haley Pace.

Steinhardt started the game and had a rough outing on the mound. After giving up the back-to-back homeruns in the second inning, she allowed Emily Boyer to hit her first long ball of the season, a two RBI shot in the fourth inning.

Steinhardt was replaced by Bekah Burkett with one out in the fourth inning. Burkett allowed a run and three hits in 2.2 innings of work. Steinhardt took the loss, falling to 6-3, tossing 3.1 innings allowing six hits and four runs.

Western Carolina had just four hits in the contest to Furman's nine. Both teams each had an error.

In the second game, Western Carolina struck early and led the contest until the bottom of the sixth inning. Katie King got the start and tossed four scoreless innings before Furman scored runs in the fifth and sixth inning and then the winning run in the eighth inning as the game went into extra innings.

A pair of walks by Kelly Braman and Steinhardt, in the second inning, set up the first runs of the game for the Catamounts. With two outs, Shemekia Scotton sent a scorching two RBI double to centerfield scoring Braman and Steinhardt.

Western Carolina added a run in the third inning. Jordan Fulton hit the first of her pair of hits, in the contest, setting up a sacrifice fly by Morgan Wyatt to score Fulton.

Furman got on the board in the fifth inning, scoring on a Western Carolina error. The Paladins tied the game in the bottom of the sixth off a two RBI double by Hannah Pace.

The seventh inning went scoreless sending the game into extra innings. Furman got the win thanks to an RBI single by Hughey scoring Jessie Homesley, who got on base thanks to a one out double.

King falls to 6-4 going 7.1 innings giving up four runs, three earned, eight hits and striking out five.