The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Saturday, March 17
El Paso, TX
3:00 PM
UAB
9-18-1, 2-1-1
11
at
0
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University of Texas at El Paso
10-17, 0-4
1
2
3
4
5
R
H
E
UAB
0
4
3
1
3
11
14
0
UTEP
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
Blazers Win Two and Clinch the Series Against UTEP
3/17/2018 11:51:00 PM | Softball
EL PASO, Texas – The UAB softball didn't need luck on this St. Patrick's Day doubleheader against UTEP as it run-ruled the Miners in game one 11-0 and then showed fierce determination and fight to rally and win game two 8-6 and clinch the series Saturday at Helen of Troy Field.
Down 5-1 in the sixth inning of game two, the Blazers began their climb back as Megan Smith hit a lead off solo-home run to straight away center field and cut the Miner's lead to three runs. Natalie Erwin hit a one-out single to left and advanced to second on a ground out.
Destini England then drove home Erwin from second with a single to center field and the Blazers went into the bottom of the sixth inning down 5-3.
Emily Kachel entered the game in relief for starting pitcher Claire Blount and sat UTEP down in order to get the Blazers back up to the plate. Rachel Rogers drew a four pitch walk prompting UTEP to make a pitching change as it brought in Kira McKechnie who started the game for the Miners.
She struck out the Blazer she faced but then walked Smith to put runners on first and second. After a pop out to second base forced UAB down to its final out, the Green and Gold came roaring back.
Erwin singled up the middle which scored Raina Cooper from second who was pinch running for Rogers, which brought Katlyn Sides to the plate and she singled to score Smith from second and tie the game up at 5-5.
England continued to beat the Miners as she doubled to left center scoring Erwin and Sides to give UAB a two run lead. Katelyn Prater laid down a perfect bunt single moving England to third who was then brought home by an RBI single to right from Analyse Petree.
UTEP (10-18, 0-5 C-USA) made another pitching and finally got the last out but the damage was done. In all, UAB scored five runs in the top half of the seventh, all of them with two-out.
UAB (10-18-1, 3-1-1) took an 8-5 lead into the bottom half of the seventh and after a pop out to the first baseman, the Miners got a double to center. A line out to Kachel got the second out of the inning for the Blazers but a two-out single scored the runner from second and cut the lead down to 8-6. Kachel struck out the next batter for the final out of the game and secured UAB's win and clinched the series win as well.
Kachel threw just two innings in game two but picked up the win, her second of the day, and improved to 8-7 on the year. Blount got the start in the circle and tossed five innings striking out three. She allowed five runs, but just one earned run, while giving up seven hits and six walks.
In game one, the Blazers jumped on the Miners early and didn't let up.
In the second inning, using a bit of the two-out magic that would prove critical in the game two, Sides drew a walk and England drove her home on a double to left in the next at-bat. England advanced to third as the Miners tried to throw Sides out at the plate.
That brought Prater to the plate and she put down a beautiful bunt single to score England from third. Petree, UAB's leader in home runs, added to her long ball total as she hit her fifth of the season for a two-run shot with the next at-bat.
A ground out ended the second inning but UAB was up 4-0.
A 1-2-3 inning from Kachel who started game one sent things to the third where the Green and Gold continued to pile up the runs. Sarah Crawford hit a lead off single to left and Smith followed behind with a single back up the middle. Erwin drew a one-out walk to load the bases and Sides put down a bunt single to score Makayla Hays, who was pinch running for Crawford, from third. England hit a single to center scoring Smith and Erwin.
UTEP got the next two batters out on a grounder and a strike out to end the third but UAB had added three more runs to its lead and took a 6-0 lead into the bottom of the third inning.
UAB added just a single run in the fourth, again with two out in the inning, when Smith got on base after being hit by a pitch. Molli Garcia moved her to second with a single and Erwin brought her home with a single down the right field line.
The runs kept coming in the fifth as UAB added three more to its score. Haleigh Sisson, pinch hitting for Rogers, drew a two-out walk and Ashton Clem was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second for Smith. She hit a single to center to drive Sisson home and advance Clem to third.
Rachel Owens drew a walk to load the bases and advanced to second on a wild pitch that moved Smith to third and sent Clem racing across the plate for the Blazers' second run of the fifth. Erwin hit a single through the left side and scored Smith to give UAB an 11-0 lead.
Smith moved from third base to the pitcher's circle to start the bottom of the fifth and after walking the first batter she faced, the Pisgah, Ala. native struck out the next batter and then helped turn a double play to end the game after five.
It's UAB's second run-rule victory of the season with the first coming back on Feb. 19 against Army in the final game of the Mary Nutter Classic.
Kachel started the game and threw brilliantly, striking out four and allowing just two hits. Kachel and Smith combined for the shutout.
England proved to be a Mining disaster as she went 7-for-9 on the day picking up three hits in game one and four hits in game two. She also racked up six RBI on the day with three in each game and scored three runs as well. The Hoover, Ala. native had one run in the first game and two in the second.
Combining both games, UAB scored 15 of its 19 runs with two outs. The Blazers scored eight of its 11 runs in game one with two outs and in game two, scored seven of its eight runs while having two outs.
Up Next
The Blazers and the Miners will play game three of the series tomorrow with UAB looking for its first sweep of the season. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT.
Down 5-1 in the sixth inning of game two, the Blazers began their climb back as Megan Smith hit a lead off solo-home run to straight away center field and cut the Miner's lead to three runs. Natalie Erwin hit a one-out single to left and advanced to second on a ground out.
Destini England then drove home Erwin from second with a single to center field and the Blazers went into the bottom of the sixth inning down 5-3.
Emily Kachel entered the game in relief for starting pitcher Claire Blount and sat UTEP down in order to get the Blazers back up to the plate. Rachel Rogers drew a four pitch walk prompting UTEP to make a pitching change as it brought in Kira McKechnie who started the game for the Miners.
She struck out the Blazer she faced but then walked Smith to put runners on first and second. After a pop out to second base forced UAB down to its final out, the Green and Gold came roaring back.
Erwin singled up the middle which scored Raina Cooper from second who was pinch running for Rogers, which brought Katlyn Sides to the plate and she singled to score Smith from second and tie the game up at 5-5.
England continued to beat the Miners as she doubled to left center scoring Erwin and Sides to give UAB a two run lead. Katelyn Prater laid down a perfect bunt single moving England to third who was then brought home by an RBI single to right from Analyse Petree.
UTEP (10-18, 0-5 C-USA) made another pitching and finally got the last out but the damage was done. In all, UAB scored five runs in the top half of the seventh, all of them with two-out.
UAB (10-18-1, 3-1-1) took an 8-5 lead into the bottom half of the seventh and after a pop out to the first baseman, the Miners got a double to center. A line out to Kachel got the second out of the inning for the Blazers but a two-out single scored the runner from second and cut the lead down to 8-6. Kachel struck out the next batter for the final out of the game and secured UAB's win and clinched the series win as well.
Kachel threw just two innings in game two but picked up the win, her second of the day, and improved to 8-7 on the year. Blount got the start in the circle and tossed five innings striking out three. She allowed five runs, but just one earned run, while giving up seven hits and six walks.
In game one, the Blazers jumped on the Miners early and didn't let up.
In the second inning, using a bit of the two-out magic that would prove critical in the game two, Sides drew a walk and England drove her home on a double to left in the next at-bat. England advanced to third as the Miners tried to throw Sides out at the plate.
That brought Prater to the plate and she put down a beautiful bunt single to score England from third. Petree, UAB's leader in home runs, added to her long ball total as she hit her fifth of the season for a two-run shot with the next at-bat.
A ground out ended the second inning but UAB was up 4-0.
A 1-2-3 inning from Kachel who started game one sent things to the third where the Green and Gold continued to pile up the runs. Sarah Crawford hit a lead off single to left and Smith followed behind with a single back up the middle. Erwin drew a one-out walk to load the bases and Sides put down a bunt single to score Makayla Hays, who was pinch running for Crawford, from third. England hit a single to center scoring Smith and Erwin.
UTEP got the next two batters out on a grounder and a strike out to end the third but UAB had added three more runs to its lead and took a 6-0 lead into the bottom of the third inning.
UAB added just a single run in the fourth, again with two out in the inning, when Smith got on base after being hit by a pitch. Molli Garcia moved her to second with a single and Erwin brought her home with a single down the right field line.
The runs kept coming in the fifth as UAB added three more to its score. Haleigh Sisson, pinch hitting for Rogers, drew a two-out walk and Ashton Clem was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second for Smith. She hit a single to center to drive Sisson home and advance Clem to third.
Rachel Owens drew a walk to load the bases and advanced to second on a wild pitch that moved Smith to third and sent Clem racing across the plate for the Blazers' second run of the fifth. Erwin hit a single through the left side and scored Smith to give UAB an 11-0 lead.
Smith moved from third base to the pitcher's circle to start the bottom of the fifth and after walking the first batter she faced, the Pisgah, Ala. native struck out the next batter and then helped turn a double play to end the game after five.
It's UAB's second run-rule victory of the season with the first coming back on Feb. 19 against Army in the final game of the Mary Nutter Classic.
Kachel started the game and threw brilliantly, striking out four and allowing just two hits. Kachel and Smith combined for the shutout.
England proved to be a Mining disaster as she went 7-for-9 on the day picking up three hits in game one and four hits in game two. She also racked up six RBI on the day with three in each game and scored three runs as well. The Hoover, Ala. native had one run in the first game and two in the second.
Combining both games, UAB scored 15 of its 19 runs with two outs. The Blazers scored eight of its 11 runs in game one with two outs and in game two, scored seven of its eight runs while having two outs.
Up Next
The Blazers and the Miners will play game three of the series tomorrow with UAB looking for its first sweep of the season. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Kachel, Emily (7-7)
L: Wright, J (2-8)
Batting:
2B: England, Destini 2
HR: Petree, Analyse 1
RBI: England, Destini 3 ; Prater, Katelyn 1 ; Petree, Analyse 2 ; Smith, Megan 1 ; Erwin, Natalie 2 ; Sides, Katlyn 1
Base Running:
RUNS: England, Destini 1 ; Prater, Katelyn 1 ; Petree, Analyse 1 ; Clem, Ashton 1 ; Sisson, Haleigh 1 ; Hayes, Makayla 1 ; Smith, Megan 3 ; Erwin, Natalie 1 ; Sides, Katlyn 1
SB: Prater, Katelyn 1
CS: Owens, Rachel 1
HBP: Clem, Ashton 1 ; Smith, Megan 1
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Batting:
2B: Valles, A 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
1
H
3
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
3b/p
AB
3
R
3
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
P
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
C
/ SoftballOF
/ SoftballIF
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
IF
/ SoftballIF
/ Softball
UTL
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
IF
/ SoftballUTL
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