The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Chattanooga
Blazers Drop Two Close Games With Chattanooga
4/2/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
The two losses give the Blazers an 18-23 record on the year as they head back to Birmingham for a Thursday night game against Mississippi Valley State. Chattanooga improves to 26-14 on the campaign.
Andrea Rogers put the Blazers up 1-0 in the first inning of game one, driving in Holly Krzan from second for her 17th RBI of the season.
Chattanooga then tied the game in the second on a soft single by Lyndsey Stiles, that fell into shallow right field. The Lady Mocs took a 3-1 lead in the same inning when Tara Tembey shot a ball into the right field corner, scoring two runs.
Walker pulled the Blazers within a run in the third inning on her team-leading fourth home run of the season. Skates tied it 3-3 in the fourth when she singled in Kayla Harris, who walked to begin the inning. Skates' RBI chased Chattanooga starter Kandice Irwin from the game.
Kaitlin Holloway pitched four effective innings in relief, giving up one hits and striking out five, to earn her third victory of the season.
Harris (8-8) took the loss, giving up eight hits to the Lady Mocs. She retired seven in a row at one point and worked herself out of a two-on, one-out situation in the sixth. Her play on a line drive up the middle in the inning kept the ball from reaching the outfield and the possible go-ahead run from scoring.
The Lady Mocs earned the win in the bottom of the seventh inning when Toni Hutchison singled in Kaitlin Holloway from second base.
Rogers extended her streak of reaching base safely to 10 games with her single in the first inning. Her streak was snapped in game two when she failed to reach safely for the first time since March 16.
Both teams turned to their aces in the second game with Brooke Loudermilk and Jennifer Nelson starting for Chattanooga and UAB, respectively.
Chattanooga took a 2-0 lead, scoring runs on a throwing error and bases loaded single by Lauren Flores in the second inning.
Skates hit her third home run of the season over the left field fence, making it a 2-1 game in the fourth inning. Krzan nearly tied the game in the seventh, when her double to straight away center hit the base of the wall. She would move to third on a wild pitch before the game ended on a pop out.
Both pitchers failed to live up the billing with Nelson (10-15) allowing three hits and striking out five in the losing effort and Loudermilk (12-6) striking out 13 and giving up four hits.
The Blazers still hold the all-time series lead, 7-5, with the Lady Mocs.
UAB hosts Mississippi Valley State at 6 p.m. Thursday at George Ward Park. The Blazers jump back into Conference USA action with a three-game series with Tulsa beginning with a doubleheader at 1 p.m. Saturday with a single game on Sunday.
