MOBILE, Ala. | The South Alabama softball team earned the program's 500th victory with its 3-2 defeat of Furman in Friday's opener at Jaguar Field at the South Alabama Invitational presented by Marriott Mobile. South Alabama (7-6) tried to rally late, scoring three runs in the seventh, but Mississippi State (8-4) held on to pick up an 8-4 win in game two of the day.

Along with South Alabama's 500th victory, Olivia Lackie became just the fifth pitcher in program history to eclipse the 500-strikeout mark against Mississippi State.

Sasha Willems led the club at the plate as she had three hits, a walk and scored a pair of runs.

Quotable – head coach Becky Clark
- On getting the program's 500th win: ""Milestones are there to recognize the program, not the head coach. Players win games and we have been fortunate to have so many great players wear our uniform. It's great to stop and celebrate all of the people who have made 500 possible. I am incredibly blessed to lead this program and work with so many great people. Here's to many more trips around the sun in my red, white, and blue."

Game 1 – South Alabama 3, Furman 2
Jenna Hardy (3-3) went the distance and made South's three first-inning runs hold as she allowed two runs on five hits and struck out four.

Victoria Ortiz delivered the big blow with a three-run home run, while Willems was 2-for-3.

With one out in the bottom half of the opening frame, South Alabama put a pair of runners aboard after back-to-back hits by Meredith Keel and Gabby Stagner. Ortiz then stepped to the plate and drove a 2-0 pitch over the wall in left center to give the Jags a 3-0 lead.

Furman answered with a run the next half inning. With two on and two out, Chloe Fabio was able to reach with a single when the ball was lost in the sun, bringing around Alex Rose Molinar to score from second and trim the Jaguar lead to 3-1.

The Paladins loaded the bases – Ashlee Lykins (single), Ainsley Yoshizumi (fielder's choice) and Riley Lulam (walk) – in the third, and cut the South lead to one (3-2) on Kiley Perry's RBI fielder's choice. Jenna Hardy prevented any more damage as she stranded a pair of runners in scoring position with back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning.

Furman moved the potential tying run to third with two outs in the fourth, but freshman outfielder Brooklynn Bockhaus came in and made a diving catch on Lykins' liner to shallow left to end the inning. 

Hardy closed out the game strong as she retired the final eight batters she faced to pick up the complete-game victory.

Scoring Summary
•    1st Inn | Ortiz homered to left center, 3 RBI; Keel scored, Stagner scored (3-0, USA)
•    2nd Inn | Fabio singled to right, RBI; Molinar scored (3-1, FU)
•    3rd Inn | Perry reached on a fielder's choice, RBI; Lykins scored (3-2, FU)

Postgame Notes
•    The meeting on Friday marked the first between the two programs
•    The win marked the 500th in program history
•    With the three first-inning runs, South Alabama has now outscored its opponents 13-2 in the opening frame
•    With her first-inning home run, Ortiz has now had a hit in nine of her last 10 and scored a run in six of last seven
•    The three-run home run was the 24th of her Jaguar career – tying her with former Jag Haley Hopkins (2009-12) for sixth all-time – and marked her 23rd career multi-RBI game, which put her in a three-way tie for 11th in the category
•    Of her 24 home runs, 13 have come at Jaguar Field
•    Stagner has now had a hit in each of her last five and six of her last seven
•    Stagner has also scored a run in seven-consecutive contests
•    Keel has now had at least one hit in 10 of her 12 games this spring
•    After going 2-for-2 in steals against Furman, South Alabama has stolen 17-straight bases without being caught

Game 2 – Mississippi State 8, South Alabama 1
Chloe Malau'ulu homered to center field to give State the early lead. The Bulldogs later had runners at the corners with two outs, but Lackie was able to get a pop up on the infield to end the frame.

Mississippi State moved a runner to third with one out in its half of the second, but Lackie battled back to strikeout the final two batters of the frame – her last and strand the runner.

South Alabama got some offense going its second time at the plate. Willems' recorded a one-out, ground-rule double and then came around to score two batters later when Shelby Garrett ripped a double of her own to left.

The Bulldogs answered back with a run of its own to retake the lead the next half inning. Malau'ulu, Kiersten Landers and Paige Cook reached on three-straight infield singles to load the bases to start the third. Pinch hitter Shea Moreno lifted a ball to left field two batters later that was deep enough to score the runner at third and give MSU the 2-1 advantage.

After Cook reached on a one-out error – the second of the game for South – Aquana Brownlee homered to left on the first pitch she saw to extend the Bulldog advantage to 4-1.

The Bulldogs added four runs in the top of the sixth. Jackie McKenna doubled to left to score Kat Wallace from second who had walked and moved up a base on a wild pitch. Two batters later, Malau'ulu drove in her third run of the game with an RBI single back up the middle to make it 6-1. Brownlee then dropped in a single in right to score two more (1-8).

Trailing by seven entering the seventh, the Jaguars tried to mount a late-inning rally. Ortiz lined a single to left and South loaded the bases after back-to-back walks were issued to Willems and Cordova. Pinch hitter Sophia Mendoza then drew the third walk of the inning to plate a run and make it 8-2. Sims then singled to left scoring a run and the ball was bobbled in left allowing Cordova to come in and cut MSU's lead in half (4-8). That was all the Jags were able to get though as with two on, Kenley Hawk ended the game with a strikeout.

Scoring Summary
•    1st Inn | Malau'ulu homered to center, RBI (0-1, MSU)
•    2nd Inn | Garret doubled to left, RBI; Willems scored (1-1, USA)
•    3rd Inn | Moreno fly out to left field, RBI; Malau'ulu scored (1-2, MSU)
•    5th Inn | Brownlee homered to left, 2 RBI (1-4, MSU)
•    6th Inn | Jackie McKenna doubled to left, RBI; Wallace scored (1-5, MSU)
•    6th Inn | Malau'ulu singled up the middle, RBI; S. Daniel scored (1-6, MSU)
•    6th Inn | Brownlee singled to right, 2 RBI; Landers scored, unearned; Malau'ulu scored (1-8, MSU)
•    7th Inn | Mendoza walked, RBI; Ortiz scored (2-8, USA)
•    7th Inn | Sims singled to left, RBI; Willems scored, Cordova scored, unearned, on a fielding error by lf (4-8, USA)

Postgame Notes
•    The first-inning home run by Mississippi State marked the first earned run allowed by the Jags in the first inning this season
•    With her strikeout of Brylie St. Claire to end the second, Lackie recorded her 500th career strikeout, becoming just the fifth pitcher in program history to do so
•    Sims has had a hit in seven of her last 10 outings
•    Willems has now had a hit in four straight
•    The eight runs allowed to Mississippi State tied a season high by an opponent (Northwestern, 2/10), and the 12 hits were the most allowed by South this spring 

Up Next
•    The Jaguars will continue play at the South Alabama Invitational on Saturday when they host Tulsa at 5:30 p.m.

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