GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum University softball and Coker University each walked away with a win on Saturday (Mar. 20), splitting the afternoon doubleheader at Red Edmonds Field. The Pioneers claimed a game one shutout (3-0), while the Cobras earned a five-inning rule-rule victory (10-1).
Tusculum (9-9, 3-3 SAC) has rescheduled its away series at Mars Hill to Sunday (Mar. 21), starting at 1 p.m.
Game 1: Tusculum 3, Coker 0
Emily Sappington (4-2) pitched lights out and a big inning by the Pioneer offense fueled the game one win for TU. Claire Smeltzer went 3-for-3 at the plate, while Sappington, hitting for herself, finished 2-for-3 with two runs batted in.
The game was pretty smooth sailing for both sides until the Pioneers broke loose in the bottom of the third. With two outs, Alexis Grampp reached on a fielding error by the first baseman and advanced to second. Kiley Longmire was hit by a pitch for the fifth time this season to put a pair of runners on. Chloe Freischmidt drilled a double to left center, scoring Grampp and moving Longmire to third. Sappington aided her own cause with a single down the left field line, plating both runners in scoring position.
Sappington's perfect game was broken up by a walk in the sixth, but the no-hitter remained until one out in the seventh inning. Back-to-back singles by Coker and a fly out to right center put a pair of runners in scoring position with two outs. She closed out the game with her 10th strikeout of the day.
Game 2: Coker 10, Tusculum 1 (5 innings)
The Cobras struck early and often to run-rule the Pioneers in game two, aided by a trio of TU errors. Longmire went 3-of-3 and collected the lone RBI.
Coker started off fast with a lead-off infield single and a throwing error by Tusculum, placing both runners in scoring position. With one out, a line drive hit the TU pitcher in the leg and a run scored. Two batters later and with two outs, a single through the right side plated the second run of the game.
The visitors biggest inning was a four-run affair with two outs in the second. Coker used two triples, a double, and an infield single to stretch the lead to six. In the third, another run was scored to make it 7-0 in the Cobras' favor.
Tusculum finally got on the board in the third inning with back-to-back doubles by Grampp and Longmire.
Coker went three-up, three-down in the next half inning, its lone scoreless frame in the nightcap.
A three-run fifth clinched the run-rule, helped out by two errors by the TU infield.
Kaitlyn Pickens (2-3) got the start and threw just 1.2 innings. She allowed four earned runs on six hits with one strikeout. Delilah Malczewski pitched 3.1 innings of relief, in which three earned runs scored on seven hits, striking out three.
