USA vs. Nicholls box score

THIBODAUX, La. – South Alabama was down 2-1 after four complete, but the Jaguars rallied in the fifth inning scoring three runs and taking the 4-2 lead before recording two runs in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively to top Nicholls 8-2.

“The kids did a good job of not panicking and not pressing,” said USA head coach Becky Clark. “We got behind, but the kids did a really good job of letting the game come to them. They didn’t try to do too much. We started doing the little stuff right. We executed some runs and got the squeeze down to get us going. From there, we got the big hits that really opened it up for us.”

With the win, USA, who out hit Nicholls 9-5, is now 4-3 while the Colonels fell to 1-8 on the year.

Hannah Campbell went the distance in the circle for the Jaguars bringing her record to 2-3 on the season. To date, Campbell has tallied 30 strikeouts in 30 innings pitched.

“Hannah did a really good job today,” Clark said. “We gave up the runs early, and then we made some adjustments with what we were doing. She did a great job of making those adjustments and executing pitches. After that first inning they didn’t score again. She did a good job of settling down and keeping them at bay.”  

The Colonels’ Katie Moulder tossed 5.2 innings and recorded the loss for Nicholls. Ashton Bennett finished the game for the Colonels with 1.1 innings of relief.

Nicholls wasted no time getting on the board with two runs on two hits in the bottom of the first inning. In the first Colonel at-bat of the game, Ashley Bertot singled on a bunt and then advanced to third on a Jaguar error. Campbell walked Ashley Ray who then advanced to second on a wild pitch. With runners on second and third, Rachel Moore hit a triple right field to score Bertot and Ray.

After junior Brittany Fowler, who had two hits in four at-bats with one run and one RBI, made it to third on a right field error and senior Haley Hopkins was bit by Moulder, a sacrifice bunt by senior Christin Crocker in a squeeze play plated Fowler for the South Alabama’s first run of the day in the fourth inning.

Freshman Alyssa Linn, who leads the squad with a .500 batting average, kicked off the fifth inning by singling to third base and advanced to second on a Blair Johnson sacrifice bunt. She then scored on a Colonel error. Fowler followed with a line drive up the middle followed by another sacrifice bunt by senior Haley Hopkins to get on second base.

With two outs in the innning, Crocker (2-for-4, 1 run, 3 RBI) homered off a light pole in left center driving in Fowler for South Alabama’s third and fourth runs of the game and gaining the lead for the Jags.

“That was huge. That was the one that solidified the big inning. She had a huge game. When they settled down, the kids did a good job of working line drives the gaps. We’re a gap-to-gap kind of team. I definitely felt like her hit was big. Any time you get a home run like that it puts the other team back on their heels.”

After a walk and two quick outs in the sixth, Johnson singled up the middle plating junior Maghan Collins (1-for-2, 2 runs) increasing the Jaguar lead to three. On USA’s third hit in the row, fowler singled to left field and Linn scored giving the Jags the 6-2 advantage.

Moss hit her first home run of the season in the seventh inning over the left center fence to put South Alabama on top 7-2. Collins scored the final run of the game off of a Nicholls error.

On Feb. 25-26, the Jags will participate in the Tiger Invitational hosted by LSU in Baton Rouge, La. They will take on Alcorn State at 10 a.m. on Saturday to kick off the tournament followed directly by their first game against the Tigers.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).