DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman Softball have been on a roll as of late, sporting a record of 7-2 since the opening of conference play. In today's doubleheader, the Wildcats faced off with MEAC probate Winston Salem State, putting in strong performances in both games. The Wildcats hit the Lady Rams with both sides of the attack, using strong offense to win Game One, winning 9-1 in five innings, and then held off WSSU defensively to take Game Two, 1-0.
Game One
The Lady Wildcats showed that they came to play in the first game this afternoon, demonstrating their offensive potential after a slow first inning at bat. The Lady Rams of Winston-Salem State got on the board first in the top of the first, but the Lady Wildcats responded in short order. The one run by WSSU in the first would be their only score of the game.
In the bottom of the second inning, the Wildcats got on a roll and took it to the Lady Rams, pushing eight runs across home plate. Getting the Wildcats started was Liz Parrish. With one runner on, Parrish turned a bunt into a trip around the bases, due to a throwing error, and batted Tameika Jonas was the next to score as Allison Garcia took the plate and batted a three-run home run over the Right Field fence, also scoring runs by Simone Ceasar and Cesley Tafoya. As the inning came to a close, B-CU had taken a huge 8-1 lead.
The Wildcats scored once more, in the bottom of the third, as a Tameika Jonas in from Third, to take a commanding 9-1 lead. Through the fourth and top of the fifth, B-CU held defensively and ended the game early, up by eight at the close of the top of the fifth inning.
Tameika Jonas (.193) finished with two hits and two runs. Sabrina Ferguson (.268) also had two hits and one run.
Allison Garcia (10-19) started and finished the game on the mound for B-CU, recording one strikeout with no Earned Runs. Garcia's current season ERA sits at 3.60.
Game Two
After the offensive output of the first game, nobody would have expected this game to be a defensive struggle, but that is exactly what spectators at Sunnyland Park received, despite facing the same pitcher for the Lady Rams.
The Wildcats took some time to get rolling, leaving runners on base in the first two innings, but they finally created a lead in the bottom of the third. Ashley Taylor for the first score of Game Two, putting B-CU out in front, 1-0. That is where the game would remain, as both teams continued to grind it out defensively, with B-CU only allowing two hits for the remainder of the game.
In Game Two, Ashley Taylor (.287) and Sabrina Ferguson (.268) each had one hit apiece, but Simone Ceasar (.313) made a huge impact with her solo RBI to claim the lead and the win.
Starting and finishing the game for B-CU at Pitcher was Chastity Sanders (4-6), who finished with one strikeout and improved her season ERA to 3.89.
The Wildcats (14-28, 5-1 MEAC) return to action tomorrow, looking for the sweep of WSSU, finishing out the series at Sunnyland Park beginning at 12:00 p.m.
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