Feb. 17, 2010
Panthersville, Ga. - Georgia State rallied from a four-run deficit in the bottom of the seventh inning and scored the winning run on an error in the bottom of the eighth inning to claim a 6-5 win over the Auburn softball team Wednesday night.
Auburn falls to 3-3 on the season while Georgia State improved to 1-0. Auburn returns to action this weekend by hosting the Tiger Invitational at Jane B. Moore Field. Auburn's first game of the tournament will be Friday at 5:30 p.m. against Ohio University.
Auburn starting pitcher Lauren Schmalz started the bottom of the seventh with a 5-1 lead and issued a leadoff walk to Lily Skelton. Tiffany Bess then followed with a two-run home run to left that made it 5-3. Schmalz was lifted for reliever Angel Bunner who walked Chelsea Sparks and gave up a single to Boese.
Whitney Phillips tripled to center to score both runners and tie the game at 5-5. Bunner was lifted for Anna Thompson who worked out of the jam with a strikeout and a double-play on a pop up.
After the Tigers failed to score in the top of the eighth inning, Georgia State's Lauren Jones was put at second under the tiebreaker rule. Leadoff hitter Rachel Cunningham hit a ground ball to Kelsey Cartwright at third, who threw low and wide to first allowing Cunningham to reach and Jones to score from second for the game winning run.
Auburn pitcher Anna Thompson took the loss to fall to 1-2. Thompson allowed one unearned run without benefit of a hit and struck out one in 1.0 inning of work. Thompson relieved Angel Bunner in the bottom of the seventh with no outs after Bunner had given up two runs, both earned, on two hits and a walk.
McCall Langford (1-0) earned the win for Georgia State. Langford threw 2.0 innings, allowing one run, earned, on three hits with a strikeout.
After falling behind 1-0 in the third inning, the Tigers rallied in the top of the fifth inning. Lauren Guzman reached on a fielder's choice and moved to second on a wild pitch. Katie Colton followed with a double to the wall in left-center that plated Guzman and evened the score at 1-1.
Caitlin Stangl popped up to short for the second out of the inning. Krista Clyde then drew a two-out walk and Cartwright singled through the left side to load the bases. Amber Harrison then smacked a double to the wall in center on the first pitch to score all three runners and give the Tigers a 4-1 lead. Harrison was tagged out in a rundown on the play to end the inning.
The Tigers added a run in the top of the seventh when Harrison drove in her fourth run of the game with a ground out to short. Clyde scored on the play after opening the inning with a double through the left side of the infield. Clyde moved to third on a ground out by Cartwright and her run made it a 5-1 game.