Southern Miss
Tulsa (DH)
Softball Drops Pair to Tulsa at Home Saturday
3/8/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 8, 2008
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Lindsey Tower drove in six runs in a doubleheader which included a two-run, go-ahead home run in the seventh inning of the opening game in leading Tulsa to a 9-6 and 12-0 (five innings) wins over Southern Miss in the Conference USA season opener for both teams here Saturday.
The final game of the series is set for Sunday at 12 noon at the USM Softball Complex.
The Golden Hurricane (11-10 overall, 2-0 C-USA) jumped out to an early 6-0 lead in the opening game, after scoring two runs in the second inning and four more runs in the third.
Southern Miss, though, tied the game in the fifth with six runs of its own. Brandi Alonzo and Ashlyn Harmon each started the frame with a single before Allison Bullard walked to load the bases. A run-scoring single to short-leftfield scored Alonzo for the Lady Eagles' first run.
Megan Hill then cleared the bases with a double to leftfield to cut the gap to 6-4. Jennifer Fox and Lauren Castellvi then each added RBI singles for Southern Miss (11-12, 0-2) to tie the score heading into the final inning. Fox became the school's all-time RBI leader with that single with 112, surpassing Kenya Peters (1999-2002).
After recording an out to start the seventh, TU's Kelley Yarmer singled. Tower followed with a disputed home run to rightfield as Southern Miss argued that the ball hit the top of the wall and not the fencing above which would have merited the homer.
The call stood and the Golden Hurricane added one more insurance run on a double by Christian Timmons.
Katie Lee (2-4) got the win for TU in relief by limiting Southern Miss to three hits, while striking a batter out over the final two innings. Meghan Harbuck, who threw the last five innings for Southern Miss, allowed four runs on 10 hits and two walks with no strikeouts to suffer the loss and fall to 2-3.
In the nightcap, Jordan Kinnard (3-2) threw a five-inning, no-hitter against the Lady Eagles to get the victory. Kinnard allowed just two Southern Miss runners on base, as she allowed a walk to start the third and a runner to reach base on an error with two outs in the fifth.
Meanwhile, TU jumped out to an early advantage with seven runs in the opening frame and added four more runs in the second stanza to pull away in the contest.
Lauren Lindsey drove in four runs and had three hits to pace the Golden Hurricane and Tower added two hits and two RBIs, while Vanessa Vice registered two safeties in the 10-hit TU attack.
USM starter Lana Vaughn (3-3) allowed seven runs (one earned) on three hits and three walks with a strikeout to suffer the loss for the Lady Eagles.
