Softball woes continue, Bobcats drop seven of eight

The growing pains are continuing for the GCSU softball team. The Bobcats dropped five out of six games in last weekend’ s Mid South Classic in Spartanburg, S.C., and then dropped a conference doubleheader at home against UNC Pembroke on Tuesday.

In Tuesday’s doubleheader, solid pitching from sophomore Haley Burnett wasn’t enough in a 3-1 loss to the Braves in the opener. UNC Pembroke drew first blood in the third, when an RBI single made the score 1-0.

The Bobcats answered back in the bottom of the inning. Freshman third baseman Kelsea Martin led off with a single and advanced to second on senior centerfielder Allison Schwimer’s sacrifice bunt. Martin came around to score when senior first baseman Kayla Smith reached on a fielding error.

UNC Pembroke regained the lead in the fourth. An error, a double and a wild pitch made it 2-1. The Braves extended the lead to 3-1 in the seventh on a solo home run.

The Bobcats managed just three hits off Braves pitching. Burnett gave up all three runs and seven hits over six-plus innings in the losing effort.

UNC Pembroke combined more dominant pitching with explosive hitting in the nightcap to knock off the Bobcats, 10-2 in six innings. The Braves got on the board first in the second on an RBI single. They extended that lead in the third, when a two-run blast made it 4-0 after the Braves had tacked on another run.

GCSU cut the lead to 4-1 in their half of the third, thanks to an RBI single by Smith. But the Braves scored five times on four hits in the fourth to blow the game open. The Bobcats got their only other run of the game in the fifth, when Schwimer doubled and scored on a single by Martin. Freshman Kristi Rodriguez took the loss.

The Mid South Classic, like the other weekend tournaments this season, was an unkind one to the Bobcats. In Friday’s opener, they dropped a 6-1 decision to Carson-Newman. Junior Brandie Monroe’s RBI single in the bottom of the second ignited the only run of the game for GCSU. Burnett took the loss on the mound for the Bobcats.

GCSU dropped two more games Saturday, falling 2-0 to Belmont Abbey in the first game and 10-9 to Catawba in the second. Sunday saw the Bobcats pick up a split, losing 7-5 to Lenoir-Rhyne before knocking off Lincoln Memorial, 5-2. In the loss to Lenoir-Rhyne, Martin led off the game with a home run, one of two hits for her, while Burnett and Smith both collected doubles. Rodriguez took the loss in relief.

In the win over Lincoln Memorial, Burnett pitched a complete game, allowing only two runs, and hit a three-run homer to help her own cause. Smith added an RBI single, while Monroe had an RBI sacrifice fly.

The Bobcats (9-18 overall, 1-3 PBC) will return to action today with a home doubleheader against Tusculum. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.

Posted by Scotty Thompson on Mar 12 2010. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry