UAB Splits Day Two of the Mary Nutter Classic

Sunday, February 18

Cathedral City, CA

7:00 PM

UAB

2-6

Weber State University

3-6

UAB

WEBER STATE

UAB Splits Day Two of the Mary Nutter Classic

2/19/2018 2:31:00 AM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score Box Score

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. – The Blazers softball team split day two of the Mary Nutter Classic, defeating Weber State 5-3 in their first game of the day before falling to No. 4 UCLA 8-0. UAB is now 2-7 on the year.

Freshman Emily Kachel was the star for the Blazers against Weber State as she earned her first career complete game win, improving to 2-3 on the year. Kachel mowed down batters all night as she tallied a career high 10 strikeouts.

She gave up nine hits but limited the Wildcats to just three runs.

Weber State (3-6) was able to get runners on against Kachel, but the right-hander only became more focused as she painted the corners of the plate and fooled hitters with movement on her pitches and pitched her way out of trouble.

In the third inning, it looked like the Wildcats might break the scoreless tie as they drew a leadoff walk followed by a single up the middle that put two runners on with nobody out. Kachel induced a ground out on the next batter but both runners advanced into scoring position.

Kachel struck out the next batter for the second out and the inning ended with a fly ball to center field.

In the fifth, a leadoff double to left center put Weber State in business early and following a sacrifice bunt and a walk, they had runners on the corners with just one out. A throwing error by the Blazers allowed the first run of the game to score but in the next at-bat Weber State's Takesha Saltern tried to score from second on a single and got caught in a run down for the second out of the inning.

It looked as though UAB would get away with only giving up one run but with two outs, the Wildcats' Ally Belloc smashed a two-run homer to left center and gave Weber State a 3-0 lead.

The Blazers responded immediately in the top of the sixth as Analyse Petree reached on a fielder's choice and was moved into scoring position by Megan Smith hit an infield single. A passed ball allowed both runners to advance into scoring position and an error by the shortstop let Madison Millsaps reach safely as Petree came across to score.

Freshman Raina Cooper was brought in to pinch run for Millsaps and she promptly stole second base to again put runners in scoring position. A fly out to shallow center didn't give UAB the chance to tag up and score and gave Weber State its second out of the inning.

Rachel Rogers stepped up to the plate and put a charge into the ball as she hit a bases clearing double to left field that pushed across two runs and tied the game back up at 3-3.

Weber State looked to be mounting a response in the bottom half of the sixth after the first two batters reached safely. As she did all night however, Kachel buckled down and got some help from her defense which turned a 4-3 double play for two quick outs. Kachel then struck out the next batter and the scoring threat was over as quickly as it had begun.

It was UAB's turn to string together some offense as Ashton Clem leadoff for the Blazers by getting hit by a pitch. Natalie Erwin reentered the game for Clem and stole second. Katelyn Prater drew a walk and the Green and Gold had two on with one out.

Petree stepped into the box and like Rogers had done earlier in the game, she laced a bases clearing two-run double to left center which gave UAB the 5-3 lead.

Weber State's Kirtlyn Bohling came back and got the next two outs to end the inning but the Blazers had the lead with Kachel coming back out to finish the game.

The first batter she faced in the bottom half of the seventh filed out to center but the second batter hit a single through the left side of the infield. Kachel struck out Landi Hawker swinging for the second out and got Belloc to foul out to Rogers at first base and secured UAB's second win of the season.

UAB pieced together seven hits against Weber State but none were bigger than the two, two-RBI doubles from Rogers and Petree. Freshman Sarah Crawford picked up the first hit of her career against the Wildcats, going 1-for-3 on the night.

Erwin also picked up a hit, a stolen base and a run scored for the Blazers. Petree went 1-for-4 with a double, two RBI and a run scored while Rogers went 1-for-3 with a double and two RBI.

In the night cap against No. 4 UCLA, the Blazers started sophomore Claire Blount. The Bruins were clicking offensively from the get go as a double off the wall in left center scored the first run of the game.

UCLA (9-0) struck again in the second as a throwing error by the shortstop allowed the run to score. In the third inning, the Bruins scored four times with all four runs coming with two outs. After Blount gave up a walk and a leadoff triple which scored one run, she came back with a ground out and a strike out as UAB tried to get out of trouble.

However, UCLA hit a single back up the middle to score one and then got a two-run home run to left center to take a 6-0 lead on UAB.

A passed ball and a wild pitch allowed the seventh and eighth runs to score for UCLA in the bottom of the fourth as the Blazers were run-ruled in the loss.

UAB could only muster one hit against UCLA pitcher Johanna Grauer as Millsaps hit a single in the second inning. Blount took the loss and falls to 0-3 on the year as Grauer improved to 2-0.

Next Up

UAB will wrap up the Mary Nutter Classic against Army tomorrow afternoon. It will be the first time the two programs have met on the softball diamond. First pitch is slated for 1:30 p.m. CT.