Southern Miss
McNeese State
Long Ball Lifts Softball in Late Night Action
2/28/2016 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Box Score vs. McNeese State | Box Score vs. McNeese State 
Box Score vs. McNeese State | Box Score vs. Nicholls
GULFPORT, Miss. -- The Southern Miss softball team split a pair of games at the 2016 Mississippi Gulf Coast Softball Classic at the Gulfport Sportsplex in Gulfport, Miss. on Saturday. The Golden Eagles were edged 7-4 by McNeese in the early game. In the night cap, the Black and Gold belted a pair of home runs en route to a 5-1 victory over Nicholls.
On the day, the Golden Eagles batted .339 as a team, going 19-for-56 with two doubles, a triple and two home runs. Samantha Papp, Tori Dew, and Katie Cleary led the team with three hits apiece, while Rachel Johnson, Lauren Holifield, Morgan McKeever, and Sarah Evans added two hits each. Holifield and Samantha Robles both recorded their first home runs of the season, while Dew and Cleary added doubles. In addition, Cleary legged out a triple on the day.
In the circle, three Southern Miss pitchers saw action on the day. The trio allowed eight runs in 14.0 innings, scattering 17 hits.
In game one, Meredith Miller earned her first collegiate start. The true freshman worked 4.0 innings against McNeese State, allowing seven runs on 10 hits and a walk. She was relieved by Jillian Johnson, who did not allow a run in 3.0 innings of work. J. Johnson surrendered three hits and a walk.
Game two saw Robles go the distance. The redshirt sophomore had a perfect game through three innings, and finished the game allowing one run on four hits with four strikeouts and no walks.
Southern Miss concludes play in the 2016 Mississippi Gulf Coast Softball Classic on Sunday morning as the Golden Eagles take on Incarnate Word at 10 a.m. Live stats and in-game tweets (@SouthernMissSB) will be available throughout the game.
Game 1 Recap -- Late Rally Lifts McNeese Past Southern Miss
Southern Miss and McNeese State went back and forth for the first four innings before the Cowgirls took the lead for good with a three-run fifth inning. The Golden Eagles relied on solid defense to keep the game within reach. Southern Miss did not commit an error, while turning two double plays and throwing out three McNeese State batters trying to steal.
In the first inning, McNeese took the lead, plating a pair of runs on two hits. With one out, Erika Piancastelli hit a solo home run to give the Cowgirls an early lead. A hit batter and a single placed a pair of runners on base. MSU used a groundout to place the second run on the scoreboard.
Southern Miss answered in the bottom of the inning. McKeever led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on a Dew single to left center field. The two runners came home as Cleary tripled down the left field line. Cleary came home to score on a Papp single up the middle, giving the Golden Eagles a 3-2 advantage.
The Cowgirls responded in the top of the second inning. The leadoff batter doubled to right center field and moved to third base on a sacrifice bunt. A double scored the runner to tie the game at 3-3.
McNeese State took the lead in the third inning as Morgan Cantron led off the inning with a solo home run to left field.
Southern Miss knotted the game at 4-4 in the bottom of the fourth. R. Johnson singled to short to start the inning. McKeever beat out an infield single to third to give the Golden Eagles a pair of base runners. With two outs, Evans dropped a ball in front of a diving third baseman for a base hit. On the play, R. Johnson raced around third and scored from second on the infield single to tie the game.
In the top of the fifth, the Cowgirls took the lead once again. Piancastelli led off the inning with a home run, her second homer of the day. MSU followed with a single and a RBI double to extend the advantage. Following a pitching change, McNeese scored a third run on a RBI single up the middle. The Golden Eagles used a double play and a caught stealing to end the inning.
The Golden Eagles pitching staff kept the Cowgirls scoreless in the sixth and seventh, but unfortunately Southern Miss was unable to rally.
Game 2 Recap -- Long Ball Lifts Softball Over Nicholls
The nightcap, which started nearly 90 minutes after it was originally scheduled, saw Southern Miss use a pair of home runs and clutch pitching to post a 5-1 victory over Nicholls.
The score remained 0-0 into the fourth inning. Evans led off the inning with a single up the middle. She moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Papp. Holifield followed with her first home run in a Golden Eagle uniform, a two-run shot down the left field line to put Southern Miss in front 2-0.
In the bottom of the fourth, Nicholls used a single and an error to place its first base runner aboard, breaking up Robles' perfect game bid. The runner moved to third on a groundout, but a foul out to first base ended the inning and left the Colonels off the scoreboard.
In the top of the fifth, McKeever singled up the middle with one out and Dew followed with a double to place a pair of runners in scoring position. McKeever came home to score on a RBI groundout.
The Golden Eagles added a pair of insurance runs in the sixth inning. Papp singled to left field to start the inning and Arielle Pollock entered the game to run at first. A. Pollock was erased at second on a fielder's choice. Robles followed with a two-run home run to left field to put Southern Miss up 5-0. The home run was the first of the season for Robles and the second of the night for the Golden Eagles.
The Colonels broke up the shutout with a solo home run in the top of the seventh. The Golden Eagles responded to the homer with a pair of strikeouts and a groundout to close out the game and preserve the win.
