Box Scores: UMBC | Charleston Southern | Wright State | UMBC

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- The Hampton University softball team won two of its four games in the Charleston Southern Tournament, held Friday and Saturday at Buccaneer Field.

The Lady Pirates (4-2) beat Maryland Baltimore County on Friday before falling 6-4 to tournament host Charleston Southern. On Saturday, Hampton beat Wright State 11-8 before falling 14-9 in a rematch against UMBC.

UMBC struck first on Friday with a run in the top of the fourth inning, but the Lady Pirates responded with five runs in the bottom of the fifth, taking a 5-1 lead after an RBI single from junior Kelsei Saunders (Suffolk, Va.) and a two-run single from sophomore Margaret Wilkins (Tustin, Calif.).

UMBC scored four times in the sixth to tie the game 5-5, before Hampton went up 6-5 in the bottom of the inning on an RBI single from junior Nina Ferguson (Plymouth, Minn.).

Senior Travonna Byrd (Newport News, Va.) picked up her second win of the season after going 5.1 innings and striking out two. Freshman Bianca Vallejo (Chandler, Ariz.) had a 2-for-3 effort at the plate, while Wilkns drove in a team-high two runs.

In Friday's second game, the Lady Pirates jumped out to a 3-0 lead on Charleston Southern after Saunders singled home a pair of runs and junior Carla Trimble (Riverside, Calif.) doubled in another run in the third inning.

Charleston Southern tied the game with three runs in the fourth, before Byrd hit her first home run of the season in the fourth inning to put Hampton up 4-3.

The Buccaneers scored three times in the seventh inning to hand Hampton its first loss of the season.

Senior Bre'Anna Brown (Los Angeles, Calif.) led the Lady Pirates with a 2-for-3 effort at the plate.

Wright State was up 4-0 on Hampton after an inning and a half on Saturday, but the Lady Pirates got on the board in the bottom of the second inning after junior Shine Huwe (Green Bay, Wisc.) homered for the first time this season – then scored four times in the third inning to take a 5-4 lead.

After Wright State tied the game at 5-5 in the fourth, Hampton answered with three runs in the bottom of the inning. Trimble and Saunders each scored on a wild pitch, before Byrd drove in another run with a sac fly to put Hampton up 8-5.

Wright State tied the game again with three runs in the fifth, but the Lady Pirates scored three times in the bottom of the sixth, on an RBI single from Huwe and a single from senior Brooke Boykin (Riverside, Calif.) that scored two, to take an 11-8 lead.

Byrd picked up another win after 2.2 innings of relief pitching.

Huwe and Brown each had two hits against Wright State, with Huwe driving in a team-high three runs.

Hampton led UMBC 3-1 after one inning on Saturday, thanks to a two-run double from Saunders and an RBI double from Trimble, but the Retrievers answered with two runs in the second to tie the game at 3-3.

Wilkins singled home a run in the third to put Hampton up 4-3, but UMBC scored four times in the top of the fourth to go up 7-4. The Lady Pirates closed to within one, 7-6, with two runs in the fourth, before a three-run fifth inning put Hampton up 9-7.

Vallejo has the big blow of that inning, singling down the left-field line to bring home two.

UMBC took control for good in the seventh, pushing across seven runs on six hits.

Vallejo went 3-for-5 at the plate against UMBC on Saturday, driving in two runs. Saunders drove in three runs. Vallejo, Ferguson and Wilkins each recorded multiple hits.

The Lady Pirates will return to action on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, when they travel to Tampa, Fla. to compete in the South Florida Tournament. Hampton's first game will be on Friday at 1:30 p.m., when the Lady Pirates take on Central Arkansas.

For more information on Hampton University softball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.