Box Score

The Basics
Score: South Carolina 1 - Western Carolina 0
Records: Western Carolina 11-5, South Carolina 14-2
Location: Carolina Softball Stadium -- Columbia, S.C.

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Western Carolina softball strung together a solid performance in the tough 1-0 loss at South Carolina Tuesday at the Carolina Softball Complex. The Gamecock pitching staff combined to post a no-hitter against the Catamounts in the loss.

Turning Point
Scoreless in the bottom of the fourth, South Carolina's Ansley Ard hit a two out RBI double to right center to give the Gamecocks the 1-0 lead.

How it Happened
- With two outs, in the bottom of the fourth, a wild pitch sent South Carolina's Taylor Williams to second after drawing a walk. Ard doubled to right center field to score Williams and Ard was thrown out at third trying to leg out a triple.
- Western Carolina had two base runners in the game: Crystal Cyr drew a walk in the first inning and Kara Salvo was hit by a pitch to start the seventh. South Carolina pitchers combined to sit down 16 straight Catamount batters after Cyr's walk. Salvo's hit by a pitch broke up that streak.

Inside the Box Score
- Freshman Lily Hayes tossed a beauty in the loss. She went four innings allowing one run on six hits and struck out four.
- Taylor Sigmon came into relief for Hayes in the fifth inning and sat down six straight Gamecocks. - South Carolina pitchers Nickie Blue and relief pitcher Jessica Elliott combined for the no-hitter. It was not a perfect game due to Cyr's walk and Salvo being hit by a pitch.
- Western Carolina had a strong defensive showing including catching a runner stealing at second and throwing out a runner at third base after the Gamecock score.

News & Notes
- The one run scored by South Carolina is the lowest run production by the Gamecocks this season. South Carolina scored two runs in the 2-0 win over Longwood on Feb. 21.
- Western Carolina was shut out for the first time this season and also failed to get a hit for the first time in 2016.
- In the last 11 innings of work, Hayes has allowed just one run.

Up Next
Western Carolina travels to Athens, Ga. this weekend to participate in the 13th Annual Georgia Softball Classic hosted by the University of Georgia. The Catamounts open play Friday facing Austin Peay at 10:30 a.m. and host Georgia at 3:30 p.m.

For the latest information on Catamount softball, follow @catamounts on Twitter or go to www.catamountsports.com.