MADEIRA BEACH, Fla. |
Jenna Hardy tossed a complete-game shut out as in South Alabama picked up a 1-0 victory in its opening game of THE Spring Games held at R.O.C. Park on Friday. In game two, Iowa scored four runs in the fourth inning, which proved to be the difference as the Jags earned a split.
Quotable – head coach Becky Clark
- On Friday's games: "We got off to a slow start today and never really put it together. I look for us to regroup after this last game and have a better showing tomorrow."
Game 1 – South Alabama 1, Chattanooga 0
South Alabama manufactured a first-inning run and Hardy (7-4) made it hold up as the Jags took game one of the day, 1-0. Hardy retired the side in order three times and struck out six in her complete-game effort.
The Jags manufactured a run in the top half of the first.
Meredith Keel led off the game with a double to the gap in left center, who then moved up a base on a sacrifice bunt by
Marley Sims.
Sasha Willems then put the Jags on the board with a sac fly to right, which was deep enough to score Keel and give South the 1-0 lead.
Both clubs had a chance to tack on a run in the third.
Mackenzie Brasher reached on a one-out walk, stole second and moved to third on a throwing error, while the Mocs also left a runner 60-feet as Willems made a strong defensive play on a ball chopped out in front of the plate to get the runner at first to end the inning.
Chattanooga had the first two batters reach to start the fourth as Acelynn Sellers walked and Kaili Phillips was hit by a pitch. Jaycee Purdy then dropped in a single in shallow right center to load up the bases, but Hardy answered back with back-to-back strikeouts to work out of the jam.
Moc starting pitcher Brooke Parrott (2-2) quickly retired the first two Jag batters in the top of the fifth, but Brasher worked her second walk in as many plate appearances and stole second and moved to third on a Chattanooga throwing error, but a ground out to second left the runner stranded.
Sims led off the Jag sixth with a walk after battling back from an 0-2 count. The shortstop then moved into scoring position as she stole second – her eighth stolen base of the spring. Parrott would leave Sims at second as she retired the next three to end the frame.
Scoring Summary
•   1st Inn | Willems flew out to right, sacrifice fly, RBI; Keel scored Text on the inning (1-0, USA)
Postgame Notes
•   The meeting between the two clubs marked the first since the 2015 season when the two squared off at the Auburn Regional
•   South Alabama improved to 3-2 in the all-time series and extended its win streak to four games
•   Keel has had a hit in three of her last four and recorded at least one hit in 14 of South's 21 games this spring
•   Willems – the team leader in RBI – has driven in a run in five of her last eight and 12 total over that stretch
•   Brasher's first steal of the contest was the 40th stolen base of her Jaguar career
•   The shutout was the seventh of Hardy's career, moving her into a three-way tie for sixth in the category
•   With her six strikeouts, Hardy (235) moved passed Linden Jones (232 – 2007) for sixth all-time in career strike outs
Game 2 – Iowa 4, South Alabama 2
Iowa broke a scoreless game with four, two-out runs in its half of the fourth to snap South Alabama's four-game win streak.
Victoria Ortiz drove in both of the Jags' runs with a home run – her fourth of the season – and an RBI single.
Sims recorded the first hit by either club as she stayed back on an off-speed pitch and lined the ball into left for a two-out single in the third.
Nia Carter and Tatianna Roman began the top of the fourth with back-to-back singles and Lackie looked as if she might get out of the inning unscathed, but Sammy Diaz lined a two-out single to center to plate a run and Grace Banes hit a three-run home run to left to put the Hawkeyes up, 4-0.
In the bottom half of the inning, it was South's turn to do some two-out damage as Ortiz drove an 0-2 pitch over the fence in right to trim the deficit to 4-1.
Keel reached on a two-base error to begin the bottom of the sixth for South and came around to score on Ortiz's two-out single to center, cutting the deficit in half (4-2).
Scoring Summary
•   4th Inn | Diaz singled to center; Carter scored (0-1, Iowa)
•   4th Inn | Banes homered to left, 3 RBI; Roman scored, Diaz scored (0-4, Iowa)
•   4th Inn | Ortiz homered to right, RBI (1-4, USA)
•   6th Inn | Ortiz singled to center, RBI; Keel scored, unearned (2-4, USA)
Postgame Notes
•   The meeting between the two clubs was the first since the 2020 season with that meeting also coming at THE Spring GamesÂ
•   The loss snapped South's four-game win streak
•   Lackie had her streak of consecutive batters retired after getting ahead 0-2 ended with a sixth-inning single
•   Prior to the hit, Lackie had retired 28-straight batters, including 19 by strike out, when getting ahead 0-2
•   Ortiz's home run was the 26th of her career and the 66th (37-3-26) career extra-base hit for the senior as she moved into a tie for third with Amanda Minahan (2014-17) who also had 66 (31-10-25)
•   The multi-hit game was the 36th of Ortiz's career, moving her into a tie with Jenny Stevens (2008-09, '11) for ninth
•   It was also the 24th career multi-RBI game of Ortiz's career, tying her with Chloe Rathburn (2014-15) for 10th all-time at South in the category
Up Next
•   South Alabama will continue play at THE Spring Games on Saturday when the Jags take on Lehigh (8 a.m.) and Iona (10:30 a.m.), both times are central.
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