Feb. 17, 2017
THE FLATS – The Georgia Tech softball team (1-6) had the winning run on second base in the bottom of the seventh, but Penn State (2-4) held on to escape with the 3-2 victory on the first day of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Quote
“We left too many runners in scoring position and we’ve got to make the adjustments to cash those runners in,” head coach Shelly Hoerner said. “A couple of our hitters did some nice things, but the middle of our lineup has to come through when we have runners in scoring position.”
How It Happened
PSU laced together three hits in the second inning to plate two runs to get on the board first. The Jackets countered with one run in the third inning thanks to a triple to right off the bat of Samantha Pierannunzi and an RBI single from Malea Bell.
What ended up being the winning run for the Nittany Lions came from a solo shot by Toni Polk in the fourth inning.
The Jackets rallied in the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Draven Sonnon reached on a four-pitch walk and moved to second as Pierannunzi reached on an error. Bell’s double to right brought in Sonnon to cut the Lions’ lead to one, 3-2, but Penn State made the final two outs to claim the win.
Emily Anderson (0-2) pitched a complete game in the loss with nine strikeouts. Penn State’s Madison Seifert (2-2) earned the win, throwing a complete game with two runs on six hits.
Quick Hits
– Malea Bell had three hits, half of Tech’s total six hits, going 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI
– Kendall Chadwick went 2-for-3
– Pierannunzi added a hit and a run
Up Next
The Jackets continue action at the ACC/Big Ten Challenge with a pair of games on Saturday. Tech rematches against Penn State at 3 p.m. followed by a 5:30 p.m. matchup against Iowa.
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