The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Alabama A&M
UAB Softball Team Splits Doubleheader Versus Alabama A&M
4/5/2005 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 5, 2005
Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
NORMAL, Ala. - The UAB softball team capped a doubleheader split versus Alabama A&M with an 11-1 victory on Tuesday at Lady Bulldog Field as the Blazers completed their season series against the Lady Bulldogs.
The Blazers (18-26) suffered a disappointing 6-5 loss in game one but responded with 11 runs on 16 hits to win the second game in five innings. UAB held a commanding 5-1 lead in the first game heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, but Alabama A&M (17-19) pushed across five runs to steal the win.
Sophomore right-hander Brittany Hodge, seeing her first action since starting the Blazers' Conference USA contest against DePaul on March 26, was staked to a 3-0 lead after UAB's initial at-bat and entered the bottom of the seventh with a comfortable 5-1 lead, but Alabama A&M's bats awakened at that point, scoring five runs on four hits which was all aided by a leadoff walk, ironically the only walk issued by the Blazers in the game.
Shenna Townsend drew the base on balls to begin the seventh and advanced to second on a single by LaRae Lucero. Alice Young then followed with a single to load the bases with no outs. Debra Borcherding singled through the left side to drive in a pair and cut the Blazer lead to 5-3. Tawana Carroll furthered the trouble with a single of her own to again load the bases with none away.
Freshman Amanda Antonovich relieved Hodge and induced a ground ball to third base off the bat of Jessica Jackson, but 3B Carrie Christophel did not field the ball cleanly, which allowed a run to score and make it 5-4. The tying run crossed the plate when Christophel's throw to the plate was not corralled by catcher Nicole Whitlock, also allowing each runner to move up a base.
Brittany Graeber then bounced a ball to shortstop Dusti Roberts, who immediately threw home to try to get the out, but her throw was late and Carroll crossed the plate with the winning run. Hodge (2-9) was charged with the loss as she went six-plus innings and gave up six runs, five earned, and nine hits. She struck out five and walked just one. Borcherding (8-7) was the winner for the Lady Bulldogs, going the distance and allowing five runs, all earned, and 12 hits while walking none and striking out a pair.
Game two was much more the Blazers' liking, as UAB's offense churned out a season-high 16 hits while scoring 11 runs for the second time in the last four games. The Blazers pounded out 29 hits in three games this past weekend against Saint Louis to take two of three games, and had 28 on Tuesday versus the Lady Bulldog staff.
UAB erupted for seven runs in the top of the third inning to erase a 1-0 deficit and then added four more in the fourth to cruise to an 11-1 win. Right fielder Lindsay Stanley had three hits, one RBI, and scored two runs in game two after collecting three safeties and scoring a run in the first game. Stanley is 9-13 in her last four games and has collected three hits in a game four times this season.
Sara Christophel and Chelsea McCall each had two hits apiece in both games while Antonovich, Carrie Christophel and Dusti Roberts each had a pair in game two. The Christophel twins combined for six RBI in game two and five for the day, as Sara Christophel had two in game one.
Antonovich improved to 5-7 this season with a win in game two. The lefty allowed four hits and one unearned run in five innings of work. She walked two and struck out one. Carlynn Johnson fell to 6-3 as she allowed 11 runs, all earned, and 16 hits in five innings of labor. She did not walk a batter and struck out a pair.
UAB strung together seven-consecutive singles in the third inning and finished the frame with seven runs on eight hits. Sara Christophel's perfect squeeze bunt highlighted a four-run fourth inning as the Blazers got six hits in the inning to go ahead by the final margin of 11-1.
The Blazers will play host to USF in Conference USA play this weekend at George Ward Park in Birmingham. The series begins on Saturday at 1 p.m. with a doubleheader and wraps up on Sunday with a single game set for the same time.
