CLINTON, Miss. --- Senior
Kristen Qualls sent the Mississippi College softball fans home happy with a two-run, walk-off double in the 10th inning to knock of #5 Valdosta State and cement a doubleheader sweep on Sunday afternoon at the MC Softball Complex.
The Lady Choctaws (17-6, 5-3 GSC) opened the day with an 8-0 win over the Blazers (16-5, 5-3 GSC) and capped things off with a 2-1 victory in the finale.
GAME ONE: MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE 8, #5 VALDOSTA STATE 0 (6 INNINGS)
HOW IT HAPPENED
>> The Lady Choctaws got all the offense they needed in the opening contest with an RBI single by senior
Makenzie Nieto to score junior
Abbey Salvo in the second inning.
>> Freshman
Hannah Creel (7-1) took over from there as she tossed her sixth complete game of the season and second shutout in the win over VSU.
>> MC added two more runs in the third inning as junior
Carly Crawford singled home junior
Morgan Bradford and freshman
Annemarie Peavy chased Crawford home with the third straight two-out hit of the inning for MC.
>> Peavy drove in another run in the fifth as sophomore
Paige Hulin scored, setting up the four-run sixth inning that run-ruled the Blazers.
>> The scoring happened with two outs as senior
Alexia Harmon drew a hit-by-pitch to bring home a run, while Crawford's two-run single scored Bradford and junior
Hayden Claypool to make the score 7-0.
>> The game-winning run scored on a double by Caldwell that sent Harmon home with the eighth run.
KEY STATS
>> Creel struck out four batters and did not walk one, allowing just three hits over the 6.0 innings pitched.
>> Crawford and Caldwell each had three hits in the contest, while Peavy and Nieto tallied two base-knocks.
>> Crawford drove in a team-high three runs, while Peavy brought home two and Bradford scored a team-high two runs.
>> Kasie Johnson (7-2) took the loss for the Blazers, allowing 10 hits and five earned runs with five strikeouts over 5.0 innings.
GAME TWO: MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE 2, #5 VALDOSTA STATE 1 (10 INNINGS)
HOW IT HAPPENED
>> The second game was a pitcher's duel between senior
Cori Cooper (4-4) and Caylie Van Auken (6-2), who did not allow any runs until the international tie-breaker in the 10th inning.
>> Both teams struggled at the plate in the second game with Valdosta State getting the first hit of the game in the third inning, a two-out double by Logan Hill.
>> MC was held without a baserunner until the fourth inning when junior
Shayla McKissock led off with a single, but she was stranded at third after stealing second and moving up on a sacrifice bunt by Bradford.
>> The Lady Choctaws appeared to be getting something going in the seventh as Harmon struck a ball well to center field, but Taylor Strickland was able to haul it in for a long out.
>> The next best scoring opportunity for either team came in the ninth as the Blazers led off with a single and had runner at first and second after an error by the MC defense.
>> MC took advantage of an interference call on a sac bunt attempt by the Blazers, and Cooper struck out two batters to end the frame and leave the runners on base.
>> In the 10th, Ashley Biddle was placed at second base for VSU and moved up to third on a sac bunt by Jordenne Gaten before scoring on a sacrifice fly by Strickland.
>> The Lady Choctaws took their turn in the 10th as sophomore
Ashley Elsensohn was placed on second base, pinch-running for Crawford to open the frame.
>> Caldwell drew a walk and then a well-place sacrifice bunt by Peavy put runners on second and third with one out for Qualls.
>> The senior took one shot at a squeeze bunt and then sent a shot to the left field wall that scored Elsensohn and Salvo with the game-winning runs.
KEY STATS
>> Cooper struck out a season-high 10, allowing three hits and one unearned run over 10.0 innings.
>> The senior allowed the Blazers to only go 1-of-14 at the plate with runners on base in the game.
>> McKissock had a team-high two hits, while Qualls had the team-high two runs batted in.
>> Van Auken took the tough-luck loss for VSU, allowing four hits and one earned run with 10 strikeouts over 9.1 innnings pitched.
NEXT UP
>> The teams are scheduled to play the series finale on Monday at noon, but inclement weather is expected in the area. Stay tuned for further updates on the status of Monday's contest.
Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC recently finished their transition process back to NCAA Division II and the Gulf South Conference and will be competing for conference and national championships in the 2016-17 academic year.
The athletic department sponsors 17 intercollegiate athletic programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Golf, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field, Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field and Volleyball.
For more information on Mississippi College athletics, please contact
David Nichols at 601-925-3234 or
nichols@mc.edu.
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