Game 1 Box
Game 2 Box
Winston-Salem, N.C. – The Hampton University softball team opened its 2007 campaign with a doubleheader sweep of Winston-Salem State Saturday afternoon. The Lady Pirates posted a come-from-behind 5-3 win in game one, while cruising to a 9-1 victory in the second game.
Winston-Salem State jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first as pitcher Amber Shore helped her own cause with an RBI double scoring Kendall Sutton who reached on a single of her own. Two more runs crossed the plate for the Lady Rams when L’Tisha Bell doubled to center. However, that would be all of the offense that WSSU could muster for the remainder of the game.
Hampton got on the board in the top of the fourth thanks to a two-out double to center by freshman Jada Jeffries, scoring Jennifer Gonzales who singled and Angela Balser who walked.
Still trailing 3-2 heading into the final inning, the Lady Pirates put together a three-run rally to pull out the victory. Tesara Liggins started things with a single and promptly scored on a double by second baseman Brittany Davis to knot the score at three. Davis would eventually make her way around the bases on several passed balls, as did Evelyn Garcia to provide the final run of the game.
Amanda Black, who replaced starter Ashley Weissenbach in the fifth inning, shut the Lady Rams down in the bottom of the seventh to earn the win. She allowed three hits over three innings of work and struck out one batter.
Hampton took advantage of five WSSU errors in game two to win rather easily. After scoring two unearned runs in the first off of passed balls, the Lady Pirates used their bats to generate some runs in the third and fourth innings. Angela Balser doubled in the third to score Gonzales and Garcia and Casandra Toole added a pinch-hit single for another HU run.
In the fourth Maggie Wolfe’s two-run triple to right sparked a four-run inning to put the game out of reach.
WSSU added a run in the bottom of the fifth on a fielder’s choice by Leslie Hollis but it wasn’t enough to prevent the sweep.
Jada Jeffries pitched a complete game in her collegiate debut, facing just 18 batters and allowing just one hit and one unearned run to earn the victory.
