March 16, 2016
THE FLATS – Winners of four-straight games, the Georgia Tech softball team (9-14) swept a doubleheader against the Tennessee State Tigers (7-17), 6-0 and 5-0, Wednesday evening at Mewborn Field.
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“I thought Emily [Anderson] did a great job,” head coach Shelly Hoerner said. “She was hitting her spots and getting ahead, which is important. She set the tone for us, and behind her we played good defense and we hit the ball. I thought we were very patient. We didn’t get on to their pitcher until the fifth inning in both games, but we didn’t lose sight of what we needed to do and what our process was.
“I’m really proud of all of our bench players for coming off the bench and making a huge contribution in different ways. They really made an impact on the game, and that’s what it’s about; the team and not just the starting pitcher or the starters. It’s about everyone on the team and it was a huge win.”
How It Happened
Game 1: Georgia Tech 6, Tennessee State 0
Two days after setting a career-high strikeouts, sophomore Emily Anderson pitched a one-hit shutout to lead the Jackets past the Tigers 6-0 in game one.
Anderson (6-9) earned the win with seven strikeouts in a complete game. TSU’s Lauren Woodard (2-9) suffered the loss going 4.2 innings with five runs on six hits.
In the bottom of the fifth, Draven Sonnon walked and thanks to Kaylee Ellebracht’s sacrifice bunt moved to second and third. Maddie Lionberger followed with a single to score Sonnon and give the Jackets a 1-0 lead.
Samantha Pierannunzi followed with a single and an RBI-single courtesy of Katie Krzus brought Lionberger home for a 2-0 advantage. Courtney Ziese stepped to the plate and took the first offering over the left field wall for her third home run of the year and to plate three runs, giving Georgia Tech a 5-0 lead.
Pierannunzi added an insurance run on a solo home run to left in the sixth inning. Her fourth home run of the year put Georgia Tech up 6-0.
Game 2: Georgia Tech 5, Tennessee State 0
The Jackets drew two walks and Kelsey Chisholm singled to load the bases in the opening frame. Ziese drew the third walk of the inning to score Pierannunzi and put Tech on the board early 1-0.
Georgia Tech tacked on four runs on four hits in the fifth frame. With one out, Pierannunzi singled, stole second and scored on a double from Kelsey Chisholm. Krzus was hit by a pitch and a double off the bat of Ziese brought in Chisholm.
Jordan Deep’s pinch-hit sacrifice fly to center scored Krzus, and a pinch-hit single off the bat of Morgan Taylor plated pinch runner Sydney Stavro to put Georgia Tech up 5-0.
Jenna Goodrich (3-5) earned the win, limiting the Tigers to four hits with six strikeouts in 5.1 innings of work. Anderson earned her first save of the season. The Tigers’ Lauren Powell (3-5) suffered the loss after allowing five runs on five hits in five innings pitched.
Quick hits
– The Jackets now have 21 sacrifice hits; they were tied for first the ACC heading into the game in that category
– Courtney Ziese and Samantha Pierannunzi both homered in game one
– Emily Anderson earned a win and a save on the day
– Pierannunzi, Krzus, and Sonnon were each walked twice on the day
– The Jackets used the entire 16-player roster in the second game
– Pierannunzi went 3-for-5 with four runs, a home run, an RBI and two walks on the day
– Ziese, Lionberger and Chisholm each had two hits
– Krzus scored a pair of runs
– Kendall Chadwick, Colleen Darragh, Morgan Taylor, and Kaylee Ellebracht each had a hit
Up Next
The Yellow Jackets take a spring break trip to Florida first at the USF Tournament March 18-20 in Tampa, Fla. Georgia Tech will take on Chattanooga, USF, Hartford, LIU Brooklyn and Northwestern. The Jackets wrap up the trip Wednesday, March 23 at UCF.
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.
