The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
UTSA
No. 25 UAB Softball Splits With UTSA in Sunday Doubleheader
3/22/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Final Stats (Game One)| Final Stats (Game Two)
SAN ANTONIO, Texas - The 25th-ranked UAB softball team split a doubleheader with the UTSA Roadrunners at Roadrunner Field on Sunday, winning the second game, 3-2, while dropping game one, 11-5.
UAB (22-7, 7-1 C-USA) got a complete game from Megan Smith (9-4) in game two, as the freshman righty held the Roadrunner offense to two runs on five hits with three strikeouts. Cara Goodwin (10-1) was charged with the loss in game one, ending the longest undefeated streak to begin a season by any UAB pitcher in program history.
"I was really proud of the way our team came out and competed today," UAB head coach Marla Townsend said. "Megan Smith was relentless in holding a good hitting team like UTSA to two runs and five hits. It's a simple game - you throw, you hit, you catch, you run, you pitch. In the first game, we didn't do that. In the second game, we did. In the last two games we've lost, we gave up big innings - moving forward, we can't have those types of innings."
For the day, Caitlin Attfield led the Blazers on 4-for-6 (.667) hitting with a double, triple and two RBI. Ashley Johnson went 3-for-8 (.375) with a double, home run and two RBI, and JoJo Fallen drove in three runs on 3-for-8 (.375) hitting with a home run.
UTSA put a run on the board in the first inning in each game, with the Roadrunners getting their first run in game two on a Vivian Tijerina RBI single up the middle. She was set up by Kendall Burton, who walked and moved to third on a Megan Low double.
UAB answered in its next batting opportunity, as Ashley Johnson powered a two-run home run over the wall to left center to put the Blazers back up, 2-1.
The Roadrunners knotted the game back up at two in the fourth inning. UTSA's Madison Kinley led off with a single into left, and moved up twice on a pair of wild pitches. The Roadrunners' Burton followed with a single through the right side to plate her from third and deadlock the score at 2-2.
UAB scored the game's deciding run in the top of the fifth. After loading the bases on Attfield and Fallen singles and a Hayley Davis walk, Heather Pearson dropped down a squeeze bunt, but UTSA catcher Tess Soefje was able to field and tag just in time to tag out the runner. With two outs in the frame and Mary Warren at the plate, a wild pitch ran all the way to the backstop, allowing Fallen to score the game's winning run.
In game one, UTSA's first-inning run was also the first run of the game. A UAB fielding error and back-to-back walks loaded the bases for the Roadrunners' Randee Crawford, who drove in a run on a fielder's choice to give the Roadrunners a 1-0 lead.
UTSA's biggest inning came in the second, in which the Roadrunners scored seven on UAB. Another Blazer error allowed the leadoff runner to reach second, who advanced to third on the following single. UTSA's Burton followed with a double to plate the first run of the inning.
After an intentional walk of UTSA's Low loaded the bases, the Roadrunners' Tijerina walked to force another run in. UTSA followed with a grand slam from Crawford and a solo home run from Kinley to cap the inning with an 8-0 lead in the Roadrunners' favor.
The Blazers put all five of their runs on the board in the top of the fifth inning. After walks from Warren and pinch hitter Rachel Dunsford, Amy Dennis followed with a bunt single to load the bases. Attfield singled up the middle to plate the first two runs, and Fallen followed with a three-run home run to left to cut the lead to 8-5.
UTSA added three more runs down the stretch on a Crawford three-run home run, and UAB was unable to manufacture any more runs, as the Blazers fell in their first conference loss of the season.
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