March 16, 2014
COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The Georgia Tech softball team exploded for seven runs on eight hits in the fifth inning Sunday en route to a 7-6 victory to sweep the series against Maryland at the Maryland Softball Stadium. The Jackets improved to 18-6 overall and 7-4 in ACC play, while the Terrapins fell to 1-22 on the season
Freshman Kanani Cabrales went 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI to lead Georgia Tech. Sophomore Morgan Taylor was 2-for-3 with a run, while sophomore Maddie Lionberger added two hits and a run.
“Morgan Taylor led off that inning and came back around with another hit,” head coach Shelly Hoerner said. “She was just a spark plug that inning. We kept believing. Just because the other team scores and goes up on us, it doesn’t matter. We have to continue to go through the process of the entire game and keep our composure. I think we did a really good job of that throughout the entire game.”
Down 2-0 in the fifth inning, Taylor sparked the fifth inning with a pinch-hit single. With one out and Taylor on base, Maddie Lionberger and Ashley Thomas hit back-to-back singles, and Taylor scored courtesy of a Maryland fielding error on a Hayley Downs ground ball.
Lionberger scored on a deep sacrifice fly to center off the bat of Alysha Rudnik, and Cabrales followed with a two RBI-double, giving Tech the lead, 4-2. Karly Fullem, Katie Johnsky, Taylor and Courtney Ziese strung together four hits in a row for the Jackets to plate three additional runs and give Tech the 7-2 advantage.
The Jackets sent 12 batters to the plate in the fifth inning and scored three of the seven runs with two outs on the board.
Maryland rallied in the bottom of the sixth inning. With the bases loaded and two outs, Lindsey Schmeiser took a 3-2 offering over the left field wall to cut Tech’s lead to one, 7-6. Cabrales fanned Jessica Warner to end the inning, and retired the Terps in order in the seventh to secure the win.
Cabrales (7-3) picked up the victory after pitching the final 3.1 innings with four runs on five hits.
Maryland’s Kaitlyn Schmeiser (1-7) suffered the loss, pitching 0.2 innings with six runs allowed on seven hits.
The Jackets are back in action Wednesday in a doubleheader at NC State. Action begins at 3 p.m. and both games will air on ESPN3.
