March 2, 2016
THE FLATS – The Georgia Tech softball team (4-9) defeated Mercer (4-12) in a doubleheader sweep, 2-1 and 4-0, Wednesday night at Mewborn Field.
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“I thought we played well overall,” head coach Shelly Hoerner said. “We put it together hitting-wise, our pitching was good, and our defense was good. They were two great team wins. I thought we were very productive in all areas and everybody had something to do with the wins, so I’m really proud of the team.”
How It Happened
Game 1: Georgia Tech 2, Mercer 1
Mercer got on the board first in the top of the third inning. The Yellow Jackets got that run back and more in the fifth inning. With two outs and Kelsey Chisholm on first, Courtney Ziese stepped to the plate and hit her second home run of the season to right field to give Georgia Tech a 2-1 lead.
Emily Anderson (3-5) earned the win and limited the Bears to one run on five hits with five strikeouts in a complete game effort. Mercer’s Anna O’Neill (2-3) suffered the loss allowing two runs on six Georgia Tech hits in six innings.
Game 2: Georgia Tech 4, Mercer 0
The Yellow Jackets struck first in the second inning courtesy of a leadoff solo shot to straightaway center by Draven Sonnon for her second home run of the season.
Georgia Tech capitalized on two Mercer errors and two hits in the bottom of the third to take a 3-0 lead. In the bottom of the fifth, Maddie Lionberger was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a Mercer error, made it to third on a walk issued to Jenna Goodrich, and scored on a Sonnon groundout, giving Georgia Tech the final 4-0 advantage.
Goodrich (1-4) pitched a complete game shutout with three hits and four strikeouts to earn the win. Mercer’s Jill McElderry (1-5) was pinned with the loss after allowing four runs on five hits in five innings pitched.
Quick hits
– Courtney Ziese went 4-for-6 with two runs, two RBI and home run on the day
– Draven Sonnon went 3-for-6 with a run, a home run and three RBI through both games
– Samantha Pierannunzi was 2-for-5
– The Jackets out-hit the Bears 12-8 through two games
– As a pitching staff, the Jackets allowed just one run on eight hits for a 0.50 ERA
– Heading into today’s games Georgia Tech was second in the league in sacrifice bunts, and got two additional sacrifice bunts tonight from Kelsey Chisholm and Sydney Stavro
Up Next
Georgia Tech kicks off ACC play this weekend at Louisville. The Cardinals and Yellow Jackets play a doubleheader on Saturday at 12 p.m., and wrap up the series Sunday at 12 p.m.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on Twitter (@GaTechSoftball), Instagram (@GaTechSoftball), Facebook (Georgia Tech Softball) or by visiting www.ramblinwreck.com.
