Spartanburg, S.C. – USC Upstate scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, aided by back-to-back home runs by Ericka Harris and Shellie Robinson, to take a 7-2 victory in the tournament finale of the Subway Spartan Classic Sunday afternoon at Cyrill Stadium.

Upstate improved to 18-1 on the year with the win and will take four days off before heading to Clearwater, Fla., to take part in the USF Under Armour Showcase hosted by South Florida. The Spartans will open the tournament Friday against Villanova at 4:15 p.m. and Syracuse at 6:30 p.m. Appalachian State fell to 9-7 with the loss.

"I think that our desire to want to play at a high level was evident today. We made big plays to save runs from scoring. We did a good job of driving people in when we had people in scoring position. We will now turn our attention to the tournament in Clearwater and what is going to be stiff competition," said Upstate head coach Chris Hawkins.

Appalachian State jumped on top in the top of the second inning when Caroline Rogers connected on a solo home run to left to give the Mountaineers a 1-0 lead. Upstate tried to answer in the bottom of the inning, putting a runner on second with one out and third with two outs, but couldn't get the run home.

Upstate tied the game with a run in the bottom of the third when Robinson (DeLand, Fla.) singled up the middle to score Lindsay Kelly (Jacksonville, Fla.) from second with two outs.

Upstate took the lead in the fourth inning. Cheyenne Griffin (Moore, S.C.) walked to lead off the inning and pinch runner Erin Schattle (Goose Creek, S.C.) advanced to second on Janna Lewis' (Huntersville, N.C.) sacrifice bunt. A single by Maddison Kieffer (Middleburg, Fla.) put runners on the corners when Kendall Settlemyre lifted a blooper into right that scored Schattle with the go-ahead run as Upstate opened a 2-1 advantage.

Upstate added to the lead in the fifth inning. After putting runners on the corners with two outs, the Spartans worked a double steal to perfection as Robinson stole home to give the Spartans a 3-1 lead.

Appalachian State got a run back in the top of the sixth when Robinson slipped trying to make a play in center on what wouold have been the third out and Cashion was credited with an RBI-single.

Upstate, though added to the lead and gained control of the game with four runs in the bottom of the sixth. Hayley Reinfeld (Parkland, Fla.) drove in a run on a single to give Upstate a 4-2 lead. Harris (Piedmont, S.C.) and Robinson then broke the game open. Harris slammed a two-run home run to left and Robinson followed with a solo shot that got out of the park quickly for back-to-back homers and a 7-2 Upstate lead.

Upstate starter Hannah Alexander went the distance, tossing seven strong innings en route to earning tournament Most Valuable Player honors, her second of the season. She improved to 11-0 on the year after allowing two runs on six Mountaineer hits with five strikeouts.

Robinson led Upstate at the plate, finishing with two hits, two runs and two RBIs. Settlemyre also had two hits, while Harris added a pair of RBIs on her homer. Lindsay Whitlock led Appalachian State at the plate with two hits.

All-Tournament Team
USC Upstate: Hannah Alexander - MVP, Lindsey Greeson, Ericka Harris, Lindsay Kelly; Appalachian State: Megan Rembielak, Caroline Williams, Sarah Warnock; Dayton: Sydney Ciccetti, Tiffani Ricks; N.C. Central: Nadia Jeffries.

Game Results
Game 1 – Dayton 18, N.C. Central 1 - Game Box
Game 2 – Appalachian State 11, N.C. Central 0 - Game Box
Game 3 – Upstate7 , Appalachian State 2 - Game Box

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