Feb. 27, 2016
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – South Carolina (12-2) fought back with a seventh-inning rally to take a 6-5 win over Southern Utah (3-11) in Saturday’s second game of the Gaucho Classic at the Campus Diamond.
Tied 5-5 entering the final frame, the Gamecocks put runners at second and third after freshman Alexis Mack’s leadoff single and junior Kaylea Snaer’s single and obstruction call that awarded her second. Sophomore shortstop Krystan White stepped up and stroked the 1-2 pitch to center to bring home Mack and end the game.
Southern Utah held a 1-0 lead after a half inning thanks to Karlee Manzione’s two-out RBI single. The Gamecocks took the lead back in the bottom half of the frame on an RBI hits by Mack and Snaer, with Snaer’s ranking as the first of her two doubles. The lead grew to 3-1 for South Carolina after junior third baseman Taylor Williams led off the second with a home run to left center.
The Thunderbirds made it 3-2 after Jordan Theurer doubled in a run in the third. South Carolina answered with two of their own in the bottom of the inning, with White and senior second baseman Lauren Masters both posting RBI singles. Southern Utah closed the lead to 5-3 in the fifth on Manzione’s RBI single.
Loading the bases in the sixth, Southern Utah tied the game on a throwing error, letting two runs cross the plate. Masters mowed down a runner trying to score for the first out, and Gamecock reliever Jessica Elliott got two strikeouts to end the threat.
Elliott (8-0) took the victory, giving up two unearned runs in three innings of work. Cheyenne Cudahy (1-2) took the loss, giving up the game-winning run after she kept South Carolina off the board during her first 3.2 innings of relief.
Game Changer:
Masters’ throw to the plate put confidence back in the Gamecocks, and Elliott’s two K’s helped to stifle Southern Utah’s comeback bid.
Key Stat:
White’s 2-for-4 day included a double, a single and two RBI, the final ending the game.
Notables:
• Snaer doubled twice in her 3-for-4 day.
• Mack and Williams both had two hits and an RBI as well, while Mack added a stolen base.
• Four Thunderbirds had two hits, Kylee Wolf, Theurer, Manzione and Bailie Nelson, with Wolf and Theurer posting doubles.
• South Carolina posted 12 hits in the victory.
Up Next:
South Carolina wraps up the trip to California with a 9 a.m. affair against ACC foe Georgia Tech.
