Feb. 28, 2010

Final Stats

CARY, N.C. - North Carolina Central University (2-7) concluded the 2010 Lady Eagle Classic with a victory over South Carolina State University (2-10) Sunday afternoon as they downed the Lady Bulldogs, 10-9, at the Thomas Brooks Athletic Complex in Cary, N.C. NCCU finished the tournament 1-2.

Kristen Schooler (1-2) earned her first win of the season after allowing zero runs on zero hits in 2.1 innings of action. She came in to relieve Shamika Chavis-Hodge (0-1), who earned the start in the circle. Chavis-Hodge struggled to find a rhythm as she allowed nine runs on 12 hits in 4.2 innings of work.

Three NCCU student-athletes put on outstanding performances at the plate to lead the Lady Eagle offense. Shakemia Edwards was perfect in the batter's box, where she went 4-for-4 with three runs and a RBI. Her partners in crime were Desanbra Franklin and Andrea Searls, who each went 3-for-4 in the game.

Franklin had three hits, one which was a double. She finished with two runs and one RBI to go along with a stolen base. Searls, who had a stellar tournament, finished her performance off with three hits, two runs and three RBIs. One of those hits was a triple to right-center field, giving her the only Lady Eagle triple on the day.

Mae'Risha Watts, who made her debut on Friday against Delaware State, saw some action again today as she went 1-for-3. Her lone hit was a double down the left field line, her first career double.

As a team, the Lady Eagles went 16-for-35 with nine RBIs, 10 runs and only three strikeouts. Defensively, they tallied 21 putouts, 14 assists and left eight runners stranded on the bases. South Carolina State went 12-for-32 with eight RBIs, two walks and two strikeouts. In the field, they had 18 putouts, 10 assists and left six on base.

The Lady Bulldogs were led by the bat of Channell Thompson, who went 3-for-4 on the day. Thompson scored one run and earned one RBI. Joining her was Denitia Carter, who was 2-for-4 on the day with one run and two RBIs. Second baseman Samantha Cain notched the only homerun of the game when the sent the ball sailing over the left-center field wall.

Starting on the mound for South Carolina State was Raven Johnson (2-6), who took the loss. Johnson allowed 10 runs on 16 hits in six innings of work. Eight of those runs were earned. She also tallied three strikeouts. She was the main pitcher of the weekend, earning most of the starts throughout the tournament for the Lady Bulldogs.

It was a battle for the whole game as each team took turns taking control of the innings. Shannon Baity earned the Lady Bulldogs' first run as she crossed the plate in the second inning. NCCU plated two runs in the second inning to jump ahead with a 2-1 lead off three straight hits from Edwards, Michelle Ishida and Searls.

The Lady Bulldogs answered back in the following inning to take a quick 4-2 lead after Cain nailed a homer over the fence with one out to bring home the third and fourth runs. The Lady Eagles halted them at four and answered back with three runs of their own, which allowed them to jump out to a 5-4 lead in the third.

It continued to be a seesaw battle as each team traded runs and leads. South Carolina State reclaimed the lead in the fourth, plating two runs to lead, 6-5. NCCU refused to go away as they sent four runs across the plate to take a 9-6 lead. That inning saw the Lady Eagles get three hits.

Unfortunately for NCCU, South Carolina State refused to go away as they plated three in the fifth to tie the game at nine runs apiece. It seemed as if the Lady Bulldogs might have finally found the luck they needed to take away a victory, but the Lady Eagles' bats never got cold as NCCU tallied three hits in the fifth. During that busy inning, NCCU managed to get one across the plate as Kaitlin Kramer scored off Edwards's single up the middle.

Kramer's run gave the Lady Eagles a 10-9 lead as the South Carolina State defense forced NCCU to leave two runners on the bases. The sixth inning saw tough defense on both ends as the inning saw just six batters between the two teams. As South Carolina State approached the seventh and final inning, they knew it was all on them.

NCCU was up 10-9 as the Lady Bulldogs stepped to the plate. Thompson led-off with a 6-3 putout that put the Lady Eagles two runs away from the win. Tonya Giles was put on base after being hit by Schooler's pitch, which gave South Carolina a base runner. Arzine Lee hit into a 6-unassisted play, which would sit Giles down.

With two outs, South Carolina State started to run out of time. A 6-3 putout off the bat by Shayla Stevenson closed out the seventh inning and gave the Lady Eagles the 10-9 victory. NCCU earned its second win of the season as they look to improve on their winning record from last season.

NCCU improved to 2-7 on the season after going 1-2 over the weekend. South Carolina State dropped to 2-10 on the season after going 0-4 over the weekend in the tournament.

The Lady Eagles will be back in action on Monday, March 1 when they host Mount St. Mary's University in a doubleheader at the Thomas Brooks Athletic Complex in Cary, N.C. Game times are set for 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

For more information on Lady Eagle softball, visit the official website of NCCU Athletics at www.NCCUEaglePride.com.