March 11, 2014
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina’s offense awoke in the fifth, scoring six runs with two outs to help the Gamecocks (15-7) claim a 8-0 win in five innings over Eastern Kentucky (9-10) on Tuesday evening at Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field.
Junior catcher Sarah Mooney went 2-for-3 with a home run, while sophomore third baseman Jordan Bizzell drove in two runs and scored another in a 2-for-3 day. Senior second baseman Ashlyn Masters also went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a run scored and an RBI.
Mooney broke the ice in the fourth, poking the first pitch of her at bat over the wall in left for her seventh homer of the year to give South Carolina the 1-0 lead. The junior transfer breaks onto South Carolina’s single-season listing for home runs in the 21st game of the season, tying six others for 11th on the listing.
The Gamecocks ended things in the fifth, scoring six runs with two outs. A one-out double by Masters brought home Bizzell after she started the inning with a single. Freshman first baseman Kaylea Snaer plated Masters with a two-out single, and the Gamecock merry-go-round commenced. A Mooney single ended EKU’s starting pitcher Leanna Pittsenbarger’s day, and freshman offensive player Victoria Williams greeted reliever Shaylon Robb with a hit to load the bases. Consecutive walks to sophomore right fielder Ansley Ard and senior centerfielder Chelsea Hawkins forced two runs across before Bizzell singled to drive in two more. Redshirt freshman pinch hitter Lauren Masters, who was the first out in the inning, pushed one to right to score Hawkins and end the contest.
Redshirt junior Julie Sarratt (6-4) struck out two and scattered three hits and a walk over her four innings to pick up the win for South Carolina. Freshman Nickie Blue collected her third save with a four-pitch fifth. The save ties Blue for ninth on the single-season list, joining Sarratt and a few others. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Gamecocks.
Pittsenbarger (7-5) got the loss for the Colonels, allowing five earned runs on seven hits and a walk in 4.2 innings. She struck out three.
Two big defensive plays helped Sarratt in the early going. In the second, after a leadoff walk, the Colonels’ Shannon McQueen popped up a bunt, and the third baseman Bizzell raced in, made the catch and fired to Masters covering at first to double off the runner. Kayla Joyce got a one-out hit in EKU fourth and tried to steal second, but senior shortstop Codee Yeske jumped, caught the throw and tagged Joyce on the helmet before she touched the bag to get her out.
South Carolina hosts No. 13/15 Texas A&M for a three-game series this weekend, kicking things off on Friday night at 6 p.m. EDT.
