Cullowhee, N.C. – Freshman pitcher Amanda Fulton posted a two-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts as Western Carolina used the power of a five-run fourth inning to complete a perfect 5-0 home-opening weekend at the Catamount Classic, downing North Carolina A&T 7-0 on Sunday afternoon at the Catamount Softball Complex.
Fulton dominated in the circle from the start as she sat down the first seven batters she faced, five on strikeouts. The Woodstock, Ga. native finished with her career-high 13 strikeouts and scattered three base runners on a pair of hits and a walk in her second win of the tournament and third of the weekend. She tallied 18 first-pitch strikes as she controlled the strike zone throughout Sunday's win.
Fulton's 13 strikeouts are the most in a game by a Catamount pitcher since Tessa Juett recorded 13 Ks on March 29, 2023, against Radford.
Junior Rylee Butler, senior Mattie Mentel, and sophomore Sydney Dirks each led the offensive attack with a pair of hits apiece, including a two-run double from Mentel. Senior Natalie Henry connected on her first home run of the season, while sophomore Maya McPherson finished off a red-hot weekend with a pair of RBIs and a single.
Western Carolina hit .429 (54-of-126) as a team over the weekend tournament, led by McPherson with nine hits and sophomore Lily Bell with eight. McPherson tallied 14 of the team's 42 RBIs over the five-game set. The Catamount pitching staff posted an eye-popping 0.23 ERA for the tournament, allowing just one earned run in 31 innings with 29 strikeouts as the staff recorded five complete games.
The current five-game win streak for the Catamounts is the longest since winning five straight during the 2024 season against NC Central, Presbyterian, and Georgia State between March 10 and 13.
Fulton recorded five of the first six outs of the day on strikeouts, sending Sunday's finale to the third inning scoreless. She fanned two more before N.C. A&T (4-12) recorded a walk and base hit to put two aboard before Fulton continued to keep the guests off balance with a groundout.
In the home half of the third inning, Bell led-off with a single and advanced to third on back-to-back groundouts before McPherson's RBI base hit allowed the Catamounts to move in front 1-0. The Aggies limited the damage, though, with a fielder's choice ending the threat after a single from Mentel.
Fulton worked around two-out traffic in the fourth with a pickoff by catcher Taylor Waitley which allowed the Catamount bats to go to work in the bottom of the frame. Sydney Dirks lined a single to left before Henry turned on the first pitch she saw for a two-run blast that pushed the lead to 3-0. Waitley added a double and stole third base before Courtney Marks lined a single through the left side to push the lead to four. A single from Butler and a double from Mentel saw the lead swell to a half-dozen after four complete.
That margin would be all the help Fulton would need as she faced one over the minimum in the final three innings with an RBI groundout from McPherson capping the scoring and allowing the Catamounts to finish a perfect 5-0 weekend.
Joey Barkhimer (3-3) took the loss for the Aggies in the starting role, allowing four runs on seven hits in her three innings of work. Aaliyah Williams finished Sunday's action with 3.0 innings, allowing four hits and three runs for N.C. A&T with a strikeout.
Western Carolina (7-9) begins a seven-game road swing with a trip to Clinton, S.C., to battle Presbyterian at the on-campus PC Softball Complex. WCU and PC square off in a twin bill beginning at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March 4. Both games will have live stats available on CatamountSports.com (Game One) | (Game Two).
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