Hilltoppers Knock Off Fayetteville State
2/4/2012 8:36:18 PM
RALEIGH, N.C. – The West Liberty University softball team batted around in back-to-back innings Saturday afternoon en route to an 18-9 pasting of Fayetteville State (N.C.) on the first day of the inaugural Shaw University Invitational at the Walnut Creek Softball Complex.
Coach Jim Bacca’s Hilltoppers (1-2) dropped their other two opening day contests by identical 3-1 scores to host Shaw (N.C.) and Lees-McRae (N.C.).
West Liberty got the bats going early against Fayetteville State, snapping a 2-2 tie with a 9-run uprising in the bottom of the second inning. Sophomore catcher Jamee Burke keyed the big inning with a pair of 2-run singles as the Black and Gold sent 14 batters to the plate.
Fayetteville State (0-5) made things interesting by plating 7 runs in the top of the third and trailed just 11-9 heading into the bottom of the frame only to see the Hilltopper bats put the game on ice with some 2-out lightning.
After the first two batters were retired, West Liberty got 7 hits and a base on balls from the next 8 hitters to score 7 runs and arrive at the game’s final margin.
Along with Burke’s matched set of 2-run singles, Maggie Starr weighed in with 2 doubles, a single and 2 RBI. Becky Fortuna chased home a pair of runs with a single and double and Angela Johnson had an RBI with a single and a double while Stacy Sumner and Alivia Swiney each added 2 singles and 2 RBI. Equitia Sayles contributed a 2-run single to the 15-hit barrage.
The Hilltoppers had baserunners in every inning against Shaw but couldn’t get anything more than a single tally in the bottom of the fifth to avoid the shutout.
Jennifer Young had a pair of singles and drove in the only run of the game for West Liberty, which also got doubles from Emerich and Swiney in a losing cause.
Lees-McRae (3-0) had blasted its first two opponents by a combined 37-0 earlier in the day but WLU battled the Bobcats to the wire after being touched up for three first-inning runs.
Starr had two of the Hilltoppers’ three hits while Young drove in WLU’s only run with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the third.
(Courtesy of WLU sports information).