Feb. 15, 2014
Box Score | GT Photo Gallery – ETSU GT Photo Gallery – Indiana
THE FLATS – The Georgia Tech softball team blasted five home runs en route to a pair of victories Saturday at Mewborn Field as part of the Panther Invitational. The Jackets (4-1) defeated Indiana (1-5), 5-1, before run-ruling ETSU (2-3), 18-7, in five innings in game two.
“We were seeing the ball really well,” head coach Shelly Hoerner said. “A couple people saw the ball really well, Maddie Lionberger and through the whole line up. We took advantage of their mistakes and took advantage of missed pitches. We ran the bases really well too, and took extra bases when we needed to. We were on fire with our bats today.”
Sophomore Maddie Lionberger led the Jackets with her first two home runs of the season. Courtney Ziese and Karly Fullem homered, as well as freshman Jessica Kowalewicz, who stepped to the plate in game two and rocked her first collegiate hit over the left field wall for a three-run home run.
The Jackets are back in action Sunday with games at 10 a.m. against Bowling Green and at 2:30 p.m. against UT-Martin.
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Game 1 – Georgia Tech 5, Indiana 1
The Jackets took a 2-0 lead in the opening inning as Ashley Thomas (0-for-2) walked and Hayley Downs (2-for-3) singled to start things off. With the two runners in scoring position and two outs, Katie Johnsky doubled to score the runners.
Johnsky went 3-for-3 in game one with two runs, two RBI, two doubles and a triple. Her second double put her in position when Lionberger blasted her first round-tripper of the day in the fourth inning, and Johnsky’s triple in the sixth stanza put her in position to score off Morgan Taylor’s pinch hit single.
Indiana got on the board in the sixth inning, scoring its only run on a Georgia Tech error.
Kylie Kleinschmidt (3-0) allowed one run on two hits with five walks and seven strikeouts in a complete-game effort.
Meaghan Murphy (0-3) suffered the loss, surrendering five earned runs on seven hits with eight strikeouts in six innings pitched.
Game 2 – Georgia Tech 18, ETSU 7
The Jackets batted around twice, scored eight runs in the first inning, nine runs in the fourth and blasted four home runs, including three in the fourth inning, in the second game.
Six Jackets crossed the plate at least twice, led by Fullem’s four runs, and 14 Jackets saw action with all but two recording at least one hit. Fullem went 1-for-4 with two RBI. Lionberger added four RBI, Ziese drove in five more and Kowalewicz had three.
The Jackets led 18-1 heading into the bottom of the fourth, when ETSU put on a small rally. The Bucs scored five runs on three hits in the frame.
Kanani Cabrales (1-1) earned her first collegiate win with six runs on five hits in four innings pitched. At the plate, Cabrales was 4-for-4 with two runs.
ETSU’s Katie Wolff (0-2) suffered the loss after giving up 12 runs on 11 hits through three innings.
