March 21, 2010

Final Stats - Game 1

Final Stats - Game 2

WILMINGTON, N.C. - The North Carolina Central University softball team (4-18) extended its losing streak to nine games after being shut-out by the University of North Carolina Wilmington (5-17) Sunday afternoon in doubleheader action by scores of 8-0 and 10-0 at Boseman Field in Wilmington.

NCCU combined for zero runs, six hits and eight errors to suffer the sweep in the doubleheader. Junior Ashanti Stroud combined for a 2-for-4 outing to lead the NCCU offense. Andrea Searls went 1-for-2 at the plate as she made an appearance in the second game of the doubleheader.

The other three Lady Eagle hits came from the bats of Desanbra Franklin, who went 1-for-3 with a walk, Michelle Ishida and Mae'Risha Watts, who both went 1-for-4 on the day. As a team, NCCU totaled two walks, left seven runners stranded and struck out six times.

The Lady Eagle bullpen threw just two pitchers on the day. Sophomore Aurora Baker (0-2) earned the start in the first game, where she took the loss after allowing eight runs on 11 hits in 4.1 innings pitched. She allowed just four earned runs and dropped to 0-2 on the season.

Freshman Kayla McPeek (2-5) started in the circle in the second game and suffered her fifth loss of the season after allowing 10 runs on nine hits with one walk in four innings of work. She allowed just four earned runs and dropped to 2-5 on the season, the only NCCU pitcher with a pair of wins this season.

UNCW put on a tough pitching performance, keeping the Lady Eagles off the bases. Just like NCCU, the Seahawk pitching stable pitched only two pitchers on the day. Amanda Davenport (1-5) and Jennifer Ladd (1-0) both earned their first wins of the season with Ladd earning a perfect 1-0 record.

Davenport allowed zero runs on just two hits with one walk and four strikeouts in five innings pitched to lead the Seahawks to an 8-0 shut-out in the first game. Ladd started in the circle in the second game of the day and earned her win after allowing zero runs on four hits with one walk and two strikeouts in five innings of action.

The Seahawk offense was anchored by Morgan Walters, who went 4-for-7 with two runs, a double and three RBIs. She was one of two UNCW student-athletes to hit a double on the day. Michelle Harrison was the other Seahawk to hit a double as she went 3-for-6 on the day with two runs.

Lauryn Buckworth went 4-for-6 at the plate for the Seahawks, where she scored four runs and tallied an RBI to help with the Seahawk attack. UNCW plated 18 runs on 20 hits with one walk and zero strikeouts. They recorded 15 RBIs with Beth Anne Kleekamp hitting three of those to go 2-for-2 at the plate. Allison Lanouette also drove in three runs to combine with Kleekamp and Walters for nine of the Seahawk's 15 RBIs.

Game one saw the Seahawks jump out to a quick 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first off a sacrifice fly by Ashley Shingleton that plated lead-off hitter Walters. In the top of the second, the Lady Eagles earned two quick base runners to start off the inning, but the next three at-bats saw three outs to leave two runners stranded.

The Seahawks increased their lead to 3-0 in the bottom of the second when Walters hit a two-run single to plate two more runs. UNCW's defense sat three consecutive NCCU batters down to retire the side, which allowed the Seahawks to plate one more in the third when Buckworth singled to give UNCW a 4-0 lead.

NCCU managed to get just one more base runner and that was in the fourth when Franklin earned a spot onboard off a patient at-bat to give her a walk. Unfortunately, she was left stranded as the Seahawks retired the next two batters to get three outs. UNCW was able to score four more runs off of four hits and two NCCU errors in the fifth to send the game to an early exit as the Seahawks took an 8-0 win.

Game two started out much better for the Lady Eagles who held the Seahawks scoreless through the first inning. Both teams were held to just three batters in the first. NCCU got its first base runner in the second when Stroud singled to the left side with one out, but was eventually caught in a double play to retire the side.

The second inning was all UNCW needed to take control as they used three hits and five NCCU errors to grab a 7-0 lead. NCCU eventually got out of the inning, but the damage was already done. The Lady Eagles tried to get back in the game with two hits and walk in the third, but the Lady Eagles couldn't get one around, leaving bases loaded to end the inning.

NCCU kept the Seahawks off the board in the third as UNCW got two runners on, but left them stranded. The Lady Eagles were given another chance to catch a break in the fourth, but saw just three batters as they were all retired by the UNCW defense. The Seahawks chose to close the deal in the bottom of the fourth as they extended their lead to 10 after plating three runs on four hits to leave them three outs away from the eight-run rule.

Searls led-off the fifth with a single to the left side to give the Lady Eagles some life. Unfortunately, their batting struggles continued as the next three batters were sat down one-by-one to leave Searls stranded on first. UNCW claimed a 10-0 win to sweep NCCU on the day.

UNCW improved to 5-17 on the season, while NCCU suffered its ninth-straight loss and dropped to 4-18 on the season. The Lady Eagles remain just one-game shy of tying their winning record from last season, where they finished with a 5-43 record.

NCCU returns to action on Tuesday, March 23 when they travel to Winston-Salem, N.C. to face the Lady Rams of Winston-Salem State University in doubleheader action. Tuesday's game is a rescheduled game from earlier in the year. Game times are scheduled for 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. at Randy Jones Field in Twin City Park.

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