MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – Despite an early 2-0 lead, the Bethune-Cookman University softball team was unable to hold off the Charleston Challenge host, College of Charleston, during opening weekend's final contest, as the Wildcats suffered an 8-2 setback Sunday, Feb. 8 at Patriots Point in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina.
B-CU (0-5) got on the board early, after leadoff Calesha Shelley (Suisun City, Calif.) struck out swinging, advancing to first on CofC's Samantha Martin's wild pitch. Shelley then stole second, putting herself in scoring position before rookie Mariah Davis (Madera, Calif.) popped up to the catcher.
With junior Sophia Ortega (Highland, Calif.) at the plate, Martin threw her second wild pitch of the inning, shifting Shelley to third on the mishap. Ortega singled through the right side scoring Shelley, putting the Wildcats up 1-0.
Freshman Nereyda Gutierrez (Downey, Calif.) walked, and with runners on first and second senior Shamaria Engram (Dover, Fla.) struck out looking for the Wildcats second out. A Bryanna Campos (Pico Rivera, Calif.) single to right field scored Ortega, pushing B-CU to a 2-0 advantage before Kaitlin Alamprese (Chino, Calif.) flew out to center field, ending the top half of the first.
After two quick outs for B-CU, Rebecca Mueller reached first for College of Charleston (3-1) on catcher's interference. Mueller would be left at first after a pop up to third gave the Wildcats their third out, and the 2-0 lead after one complete.
After a productive first, the Wildcats were unable to string together anything in the top of the second, leaving three runners stranded.
CofC capitalized on the B-CU scoreless inning after Katie Padilla was hit by a pitch, followed by designated hitters Allison Pedigo's RBI double to center field, carving at the Wildcat 2-1 lead.
Neither team scored in the third, while the Cougars knotted the game in the bottom of the fourth and scored a go-ahead run in the bottom of the fifth.
The Wildcats, trailing 3-2 were unable to produce on the offensive end before College of Charleston extended its lead, scoring five runs in the bottom of the sixth, capturing the 8-2 victory.
Ortega went 2-for-3 at the plate for B-CU with one run and one RBI, while four Cougars finished with two hits on the afternoon led by Mueller's three RBIs.
Martin (2-0) earned the CofC win allowing five hits and two runs while walking two batters and striking out five. Sabrina Anguiano (Hacienda Heights, Calif.) fell to 0-5 on the year after collecting the loss for the Wildcats.
B-CU returns to the diamond Friday, Feb. 13 as the Wildcats participate in the three-day Jacksonville University Tournament.
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