Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
Spartanburg, S.C. – The USC Upstate softball team continued its 17-game homestand Tuesday afternoon by sweeping the Furman Paladins in a non-conference doubleheader by scores of 10-7 and 5-3 in eight innings from Cyrill Stadium.
Upstate improves to 13-2 on the season while Furman falls to 7-11 overall.
The Spartans began the day by holding off the Paladins 10-7 in game one before having to go to extra innings to win the second game 5-3 on a walk off.
Upstate remains at home this weekend as it hosts the five-team Buffalo Wild Wings Spartan Invitational beginning Friday morning.
Game 1 – Furman 7, USC Upstate 10
Brittany Case drove in a team-high three runs, while Ansley Gilstrap and Abbie Millete both had two hits and two RBI, as the Spartans opened the doubleheader with a 10-7 victory in game one.
Holly McKinnon (5-1) tossed her second complete game in three days to earn the win allowing seven runs (three earned) on four hits, three walks and eight strikeouts. Lindsey Bert (4-7) took the loss pitching 5.0 innings and gave up 10 runs on eight hits and three walks.
Sieara Bishop and AnnaRose Borelli led Furman offensively with two RBI and one hit each.
Upstate struck quickly in the bottom of the second opening up with six runs to take a 6-0 lead. Case highlighted the inning on her three-run double to center field with two outs scoring Gilstrap, Megan Obier and Kendsey Chappelear. Kayla Hussey began the scoring with her RBI single to center field and Obier followed the next at-bat getting hit by a pitch. Prior to the bases clearing double from Case, Gilstrap drew a bases load walk plating Hussey.
The Paladins cut into the lead after a four-run frame in the top of the third, making it a 6-4 contest. Bishop drove in two runs during the inning with her two-run homer off McKinnon to left field.
Ryan Rector answered to lead off the bottom of the third with her triple to right field. She came home the following at-bat on Abbie Millete's sacrifice fly to center field. The Spartans added a run in the fourth on a single by Karla Beasley to extend their lead to 8-4.
Bert helped her cause in the top of the fifth with a leadoff home run, cutting Upstate's lead down to 8-5, only to see the Spartans respond with two runs in the bottom-half of the fifth started by Millete's homer. Gilstrap later added an RBI single to center field giving Upstate a 10-5 advantage.
Furman was only able to get as close as 10-8 in the sixth on a two-run homer by Borrelli.
Game 2 – Furman 3, USC Upstate 5 (8)
Amy Szymanowski had a game-high three hits, including the game-winning home run, and drove in all five runs as Upstate had to go into extra innings for the first time since Mar. 17, 2015 at East Tennessee State to complete the doubleheader sweep 5-3. Two of Szymanowski's three hits were home runs.
Case added two hits while Beasley contributed one. Candace Johnson had a team-leading two hits for the Paladins and Hannah Reynolds collected two RBI.
McKinnon (6-1), the reigning A-Sun Co-Pitcher of the Week, picked up her second win of the day after coming on in relief and pitching 3.2 innings. She allowed just one run on two hits, one walk and three strikeouts. Emily Demonte (2-3) suffered the loss for Furman tossing a complete game and giving up five runs (two earned) on eight hits, no walks and no strikeouts.
Reynolds gave the Paladins a 2-0 lead in the top of the first after her two-run homer to center field against Spartan starter Amanda Storch. Upstate responded in the bottom-half of the second inning when Szymanowski hit her first home run of the afternoon, a two-run blast, to tie the game 2-2.
The Spartans took a late 3-2 lead in the sixth on Szymanowski's third RBI of the game, but Johnson evened the score at 3-3 with two outs in the top of the seventh after her solo home run.
Upstate began the bottom of the eighth with Rector being placed on second base. Following a fly out by Beasley, Szymanowski capped off her impressive afternoon with a two-run homer over the right center field fence, giving the Spartans the 5-3 victory. It marks the second time this season that Szymanowski has posted three hits and five RBI in a game.
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