MOBILE, Ala. ? The University of South Alabama softball team shutout the Alcorn State Lady Braves, 7-0 and 4-0, in a doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon at Jaguar Field. With the two wins, the Jaguars improve to 23-14 overall, while Alcorn State falls to 10-23.
“These two wins help us get back on track, get our feet back under us and give us confidence heading into the series against Louisiana-Monroe this weekend,” said South Alabama head softball coach Becky Clark.
Game One: South Alabama 7, Alcorn State 0
In the opener, South Alabama got on the board in the third inning with a two-out, two-RBI double from shortstop Carolina Mendoza, plating catcher Kristen Hayes and second baseman Jenny Stevens to take a 2-0 lead.
Centerfielder Kait Chernomaz led off the bottom of the fourth with a solo home run, her second in as many games, to start the scoring. Leftfielder Evelyne Pare then reached on a single to the right side and moved to second on a throwing error by the Lady Braves second baseman. She later came around to score on a double by first baseman Corey Race. Hayes hit an RBI single two batters later to plate Race and give the Jaguars a 5-0 lead.
South Alabama added an unearned run in the sixth inning to take a 7-0 advantage.
Beth Pilgrim (6-4) picked up the win, pitching a complete-game shutout, striking out seven batters while only allowing one walk and three hits. She never faced more than four batters in an inning and only allowed four Lady Brave base runners.
Tynetta Sims (4-11) took the loss, giving up seven runs on 13 hits, walking two and striking out two.
Game Two: South Alabama 4, Alcorn State 0
The Jaguars jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning on a two-run single to the left side by Hayes, plating Pare and Chernomaz.
With one out in the fifth inning, Hayes then drove in her third run of the game with a sacrifice fly that extended the Jaguar lead to 3-0.
South Alabama got its final run of the day when Mendoza led off the bottom of the sixth with her first home run of the season, putting South Alabama up 4-0.
Leggett (4-2) went the distance and earned the win, striking out four and only giving up one walk and four hits. She only allowed six base runners and after the first inning, did not face more than four batters in an inning.
Corina Pendleton (6-12) received the loss, allowing up four runs on five hits, while walking five and striking out five.
The Jaguars will be back to Sun Belt Conference play this weekend when they travel to Monroe, La., for a three-game series against Louisiana-Monroe. The series will begin with a doubleheader on Friday at 4 p.m. and will conclude with a single game on Saturday at Noon. Live Stats for the games can be accessed at www.usajaguars.com.
