Game One Box | Game Two Box
Nashville, Tenn. – Dana Landers led the 24th-ranked USC Upstate softball team to a 4-1 victory in game one and Lipscomb countered by taking a 5-1 win in game two of the A-Sun doubleheader Saturday evening at Draper Diamond.
Landers (Simpsonville, S.C.) belted a solo home run to highlight the game one win, while Lipscomb used a four-run first inning to build a lead and take the win in game two. Upstate fell to 35-4 overall and 16-2 in the A-Sun with the split. The loss in game two of the doubleheader snapped the Spartans' 16-game conference winning streak and 14-game winning streak overall.
Lipscomb is 23-19 overall and 10-7 in the A-Sun. The teams return to action Sunday afternoon for the deciding game of the series starting at 3:00 p.m. Central time and 4:00 p.m. Eastern.
"It's hard to stay at the high level we have been playing every game out," said Upstate head coach Chris Hawkins. "I am sure we will bounce back and get back on track tomorrow. I am proud of the effort that Anna Miller gave us in relief in game two."
Game One
Upstate loaded the bases in the top of the first inning after a walk, single and walk. After a fielder's choice force out at home gave the Spartans their first out, Lipscomb got out of the inning when Maddison Kieffer (Middleburg, Fla.) lined to first for an unfortunate double play to end what looked to be a promising inning.
After a promising first inning, Upstate broke on top in the second inning when Landers led off the inning with a solo home run to left center. It was her fifth homer of the season and the 41st of the year for the Spartans.
Upstate starter Hannah Alexander (Lexington, N.C.) got into a bit of a jam in the second inning. After Gracey Aguirre reached by being hit by a pitch, Lipscomb put runners on first and second when Mickey Bell reached first on a bunt single. Bell was trying to sacrifice Aguirre over to second, but the bunt had spin on it which made it difficult for the ball to be picked up cleanly. Alexander, though, hung tough and got a pop up, foul out and ground out to get out of the jam and maintain the Spartans' 1-0 lead.
Upstate plated a run in the top of the third after a costly error. Ericka Harris (Piedmont, S.C.) reached on an error at third with one out. Pinch runner Mellena Helms (Concord, N.C.) stole second with two outs and scored on Cheyenne Griffin's (Moore, S.C.) RBI single up the middle to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead.
Upstate's defense was solid throughout the game. Landers had the big homer to start things off, but also turned in a diving catch on a line drive in the fourth. In the fifth, Harris threw out Bree Thruman attempting to steal second. It was Harris' 46th runner thrown out in her career and the first time this season Thurman had been thrown out attempting to steal.
Upstate broke the game open in the sixth inning, stringing together key hits to extend the lead to 4-0. Landers started things off with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice. Lindsay Kelly (Jacksonville, Fla.) doubled to right to drive in Landers and later scored on Meredith Barnes' (Salem, Ore.) RBI single up the middle.
Lipscomb got a run back in the sixth when Paige Neely led off the inning with a solo homer to center to cut the Upstate lead to 4-1. A double by Aguirre forced Hawkins to replace Alexander and bring in freshman Jamie Ujvari (Niceville, Fla.). Ujvari got a fly out to left, a ground out to first and a pop up to short to end the inning and keep the score at 4-1.
Ujvari was simply strong in her two-inning relief appearance. She retired the first four batters she faced and after allowing a walk, got a strikeout for the second out of the seventh inning. She did run into a little trouble in the seventh, putting runners on first and third with two outs. Ujvari, though, hung tough and got Neely, who homered in the sixth, to strikeout looking to end the game and earn her first career save.
Alexander tossed six innings, allowing one run on six hits with two strikeouts to improve to 15-2 on the year. Lipscomb starter Heather Parker took the loss to fall to 9-10 on the year. She allowed four runs on eight hits with three strikeouts. Landers was outstanding at the plate in the game. She finished 3-for-3 with an RBI and two runs.
Game Two
Upstate generated a run in the first inning. Barnes led off the inning with a walk, stole second and advanced to third on Harris' ground out. After a second out, Barnes scampered home on a wild pitch to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead.
Lipscomb got off to a fast start in the bottom of the first. Brittany Elmore singled to lead off the inning and advanced to second when Bridgette Begle reached on a sacrifice bunt attempt after Harris' throw to first was dropped, putting runners on first and second. Neely came through with an RBI double and Mickey Bell followed with a three-run homer to give the Bisons a 4-1 lead. The four runs were the most scored against the Spartans in the first inning this season.
Lipscomb extended its lead in the third inning. The Lady Bisons loaded the bases with one out and made it a 5-1 lead on Kristen Sturdivant's sacrifice fly. With runners on second and third and two outs, Landers made a solid play ranging to her left to catch a line drive and end the inning.
After Barnes' run in the first, Upstate had a hard time getting to Lipscomb starter Tanner Sanders. The Spartans were retired in order in each of the second, third, fifth and seventh innings, preventing a momentum swing following Lipscomb's four-run first inning. Upstate didn't get a hit until Barnes slapped a single down the line in right with two outs in the sixth.
Upstate's Anna Miller (Portland, Ore.) turned in a strong effort in relief for the Spartans. She struck out six in three innings of relief to keep Lipscomb from adding to its 5-1 lead.
Ujvari, who earned the save in the first game, took her first loss of the season after getting the start in game two. She allowed five runs in three innings of work to fall to 16-1 on the year. Sanders improved to 13-7 on the year with the win.
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