Albany State softball splits with Georgia Southwestern

AMERICUS — The Albany State women’s softball team received the best of both worlds in its trip to Americus. ASU rallied in the first game against Georgia Southwestern to win 10-7 but could not do the same in Game 2, losing 15-0.

With the split, the Lady Rams fell to 16-15 overall after seeing their eight game winning streak snapped. The Lady Hurricanes improved to 17-21.

In the first game, Albany State started its rally in the top of the third inning after trailing by a pair of runs. Toni Coleman singled to right center to score Malea Maye and Danielle Turner to tie the game. Georgia Southwestern scored four runs in the bottom of the inning to take a 6-2 advantage.

ASU was able to cut the deficit once again in the fourth inning. Maye belted a three-run homer, and the Lady Rams trailed 6-5.

The Lady Hurricanes scored a run in the bottom of the fifth inning for a 7-5 lead, but the Lady Rams took control of the contest in the sixth inning. Kayla Alexander’s single to center field scored Jade Williams and sparked a five-run inning that the home team could not overcome.

Maye led Albany State by going 4-for-5 from the plate and registering four RBIs. Jala Stewart added two hits and two RBIs, while Coleman had two hits. Tiffany Massey (7-6) was the losing pitcher.

The Lady Rams recorded 12 hits in the game.

Georgia Southwestern was led by Sabrina Sieber, who finished hitting 2-for-2. Shannon Gibson (6-8) was the losing pitcher.

In the second game, Georgia Southwestern grabbed a 3-0 lead after the first inning, then scored seven runs in the second and added five more between the third and fourth innings to generate a 15-0 advantage. ASU could not recover from the huge deficit.

Albany State only had three hits for the entire contest. Taylor Clemens (2-2) was the losing pitcher.

Haylet Tierce led GSW with three hits and three RBIs. Brittany Childs (8-7) was the winning pitcher.

Albany State will return to conference action March 31-April 1. The Lady Rams will travel to Augusta to face SIAC foe Paine College. Friday’s game will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday’s doubleheader will begin at 1 p.m.