Box Score |   2017 SoCon Championship Bracket

The Basics:
Score: Western Carolina 8, Samford 6
Records: Western Carolina 17-28, 6-11 SoCon, Samford 22-33, 10-8
Location: Cullowhee, N.C.

CULLOWHEE, N.C. -- Sophomore Madison Armstrong's grand-slam completed a come from behind victory for Western Carolina softball as the Catamounts defeated Samford 8-6 Sunday, on senior day, at the Catamount Softball Complex. The victory secured a Southern Conference series win for the Catamounts against the Bulldogs. Western Carolina earned the No. 6 seed in the upcoming Southern Conference Championship, held in Chattanooga, Tenn., and will face No. 3 seed ETSU at 3 p.m. Wednesday. The game can be heard on the Catamount Sports Network and seen on the SoCon Digital Network.

Turning Point:
Trailing 6-2, heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, Western Carolina scored six unanswered runs, capped off by Armstrong's two-out grand-slam, to take the Catamounts' first lead of the game and eventually capture the win.

How it Happened:
Samford took the early lead scoring a run in the top of the first. Western Carolina answered with a run in the bottom of the first from an RBI single by Armstrong. The Bulldogs would go on to score in the next two innings, one in the second and two in the third to build a 4-1 lead. The Catamounts sliced the Bulldog lead in half scoring a run in the bottom of the fourth. Samford yielded back-to-back two-out walks to Kara Salvo and Shaina Reed and Salvo scored off an RBI single by Courtney Buchanan. In the top of the fifth, Samford tacked on two more runs to lead 6-2. WCU exploded for six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Erica Hayes was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and back-to-back singles by Salvo and Reed loaded the bases. With one out, Ashlyn Long singled up the middle for an RBI which scored E. Hayes. Abigail Daniels followed with an RBI single scoring Salvo. With two outs, and the bases loaded, Armstrong hit a grand-slam to give WCU an 8-6 lead which turned into a victory.

Inside the Box Score:
- Buchanan got the start and went 2.2 innings giving up four runs, three earned, walked four and struck out four.
- Freshman hurler Kinsey Liscio relieved Buchanan in the third inning and completed the games. She went 4.1 innings giving up two runs on two hits and struck out three. She takes the win, her second straight victory on the mound, and improves to 2-5 on the year.
- Western Carolina had 10 hits in the game and Samford had five.
- WCU pitchers gave up eight walks in the game.
- Samford left 11 runners on base while WCU stranded six.
- Long, Daniels, Armstrong and Reed each has two hits in the game.
- Armstrong scored a run and had five RBI in the game.

News & Notes:
- Western Carolina's 8-6 win against Samford, on Sunday, was the second SoCon series the Catamounts have won this season. WCU took the SoCon series against Chattanooga earlier in the year.
- WCU's SoCon series win, against Samford, is the third SoCon series win against the Bulldogs in the last four series meetings.
- Buchanan's RBI single, in Sunday's game against Samford, is the first hit and RBI for the senior since her freshman year.
- Salvo drew two walks against Samford giving her 73 walks in her career breaking the school record for walks in a career.
- Reed hit the first triple of her career against Samford. - Western Carolina ends the season 8-6 at home.
- The Catamounts are 4-3 over the last seven games.

Up Next:
Western Carolina begins play in the Southern Conference Championships Wednesday as the No. 6 seed and will face No. 3 seed ETSU at 3 p.m.

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