5 Things You May Have Missed in College Softball Friday
The DI College Softball teams are well into their conference play all across the country. Below are five things that stood out to us at FPN, that you may have missed from Friday’s play.
Bruins Move to First Place in Pac-12
The No. 4 ranked Bruins moved into first place in the Pac-12 Conference after a 3-0 victory over No. 1 Washington on Friday at Easton Stadium. Redshirt freshman Aaliyah Jordan had two hits, including a solo home run to jumpstart the Bruins’ offense, while redshirt sophomore Rachel Garcia was dominant in the circle with 10 strikeouts in the complete-game shutout. The Bruins improved to 38-3 overall and 13-3 in Pac-12 play, while the Huskies fell to 41-3 and 12-3 in league. The Bruins and the Huskies continue their three-game series on Saturday at 1 p.m.
For your National Freshman of the Year consideration … Aaliyah Jordan!!!! 1-0 Bruins to the fifth. #GoBruins
Watch now: https://t.co/AV3ZdOXwsG pic.twitter.com/Ou6YgYJonh
— UCLA Softball (@UCLASoftball) April 21, 2018
LSU Shuts Out Texas A&M
The No. 18 ranked LSU softball team shut out the No. 8 ranked Texas A&M Aggies, 2-0 Friday night in Tiger Park. With the win, LSU improves to 34-10 on the year and 8-7 in conference play, while Texas A&M falls to 36-11 and 9-7 in the SEC. Senior Carley Hoover pitched a complete-game shutout and earned her 15th win of the season. She allowed only three hits and tallied four strikeouts on the night against a tough Texas A&M offense. LSU extended their all-time series lead over Texas A&M to 11-6 with the win. The Tigers and Aggies will take the field for game two on Saturday with the first pitch slated for 6:30 p.m. CT.
ASU Tops Arizona in Walk-Off Fashion
ASU first baseman Danielle Gibson hit a walk-off RBI double in the bottom of the seventh to lead the No. 5 Arizona State softball team to a 2-1 win over the No. 16 Arizona Wildcats in the first game of the three-game series for the coveted Territorial Cup Series point. The Freshmen of the Year candidate’s walk-off accounts for the first walk-off victory of the season for the Sun Devil squad. With the double, Gibson currently has a seven-game hitting streak, just shy of her career record 10-game streak. Sun Devil pitcher G Juarez stayed dominant in the circle all night, striking out 13 Wildcat batters and keeping them scoreless for the remainder of the game. Game two of the quest for the Territorial Cup will take place on Saturday at 2 p.m.
https://twitter.com/ASUSoftball/status/987507414269214721
Florida Takes Game One vs. Mississippi State
No. 6 Florida defeated No. 19 Mississippi State 8-3 to open the series Friday evening at Nusz Park. Amanda Lorenz went 4-for-4 at the plate and was a double shy of the cycle as she recorded a pair of singles, a triple and a home run in the effort. Kelly Barnhill earned the win in the circle, recorded 10 strikeouts and improved to 20-1 on the season. With the win, Florida extended the all-time series lead over Mississippi State to 34-19 and 15-8 while on the road. The Gators also improved to 17-6 over Top 25 opponents. The two teams will return to Nusz Park Saturday, April 21, for a doubleheader that is slated to begin at 2 p.m. ET.
Georgia Shuts Out Kentucky 1-0
The sixth-ranked Georgia softball team (39-6, 12-4) recorded its 21stshutout of the season with a 1-0 victory over #18 Kentucky (27-14, 4-11) Friday evening. Mary Wilson Avant (6-1) pitched the complete-game shutout, holding the Wildcats to just two hits. The sophomore worked a no-hitter into the fifth, retiring 11-straight hitters at one point. She recorded a season-high eight strikeouts. It’s her first seven-inning shutout of the season. Georgia manufactured the winning run in the top of the sixth. Alyssa DiCarlo drew a leadoff walk to begin the inning then was bunted to second by Alysen Febrey. Mahlena O’Neal got a base hit to fall in right field, scoring DiCarlo from second and putting the Bulldogs ahead, 1-0. The Bulldogs and Wildcats will square off in the second game of the series Saturday at 2 p.m in Lexington.
