The East Carolina University softball team split Saturday’s two games with Tulsa.
The doubleheader was held on Sunday due to the threat of bad weather. ECU won the first game, 9-1 in six innings, but dropped the second one, 3-1 in 10 innings.
Below is a full report from ECU Sports Information.
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Photo credit (ECU Sports Information photo)
The East Carolina softball team’s doubleheader with Tulsa on Saturday was a tale of two different games as the Pirates run ruled Tulsa in six innings, 9-1, before falling short to the Golden Hurricane in 10 innings, 3-1, on Saturday at Max R. Joyner Family Stadium.
Game One: East Carolina 9, Tulsa 1 (6 inn.)
Logan Sutton went 3-for-3 at the plate with three RBI as East Carolina bounced back from its series opening defeat last night to dispatch Tulsa, 9-1, in six innings on Saturday afternoon.
Kanisha Anderson and Anna Sawyer each had multi-hit games with two hits as the Pirates blew the game open with a four-run third inning.
Annie Kate Dalton and Sawyer both recorded an RBI in the bottom of the first to get the Pirates off to a good start before Sutton and Trinity Nichols helped extend ECU’s lead to 4-0 in the bottom of the third.
Sutton eventually scored on a passed ball and Gabby Fowler hit a single and then stole second, plating Nichols to make the score 6-0.
Tulsa would load the bases and draw a walk to score a run in the top of the fifth and avoid the shutout but Kendall Frost forced Tulsa into a double play to halt the Golden Hurricane’s rally.
Sawyer hit another RBI single in the bottom of the sixth to make it 7-1 and Sutton doubled down the right field line to score Sawyer and Hannah Evans and end the game.
Taylor Apple (7-3) picked up the win in the circle while Frost earned her third save of the season.
Game Two: Tulsa 3, East Carolina 1 (10 inn.)
Taylor Apple tossed a season-high nine strikeouts in a career-high 10 innings of work in the circle but Tulsa outlasted East Carolina, 3-1, in 10 innings to take the series on Saturday evening.
Both teams were locked in a pitcher’s duel for the better part of seven innings as both teams combined to have only six runners in scoring position.
The Pirates had a golden opportunity to score first in the bottom of the fifth after Hailey Massaro advanced to third on a wild pitch with two outs but ECU was unable to plate Massaro. Tulsa also had its opportunity as the Golden Hurricane had a runner on third with two outs as well but the next Tulsa batter struck out looking.
ECU had two more chances to win the game with runners on first and third in the bottom of the eighth and loading the bases in the bottom of the ninth but Tulsa was able to prevent the Pirates from plating a run to win the game.
Tulsa loaded the bases in the top of the 10th inning and a two RBI single gave the Golden Hurricane a 2-0 lead. Apple’s wild pitch ended up wedged between the railing behind home plate, allowing another runner for Tulsa to cross home.
Dalton scored Emma Jackson on a sac fly to make ECU’s deficit 3-1 in the bottom of the 10th but the Pirates were unable to threaten any further as Tulsa took the series.
Apple (7-4) took the loss, throwing 155 pitches and facing 41 batters. Maura Moore (9-6) threw seven strikeouts for the win.
Up Next
East Carolina (16-10, 4-2 AAC) hosts N.C. Central on Tuesday at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.