Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
East Carolina
Marshall Drops Final Game, Wins ECU Series
3/22/2014 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 22, 2014
Box Score (HTML)
GREENVILLE, N.C. - Marshall softball (9-20, 3-6 C-USA) was unable to sweep ECU (16-10, 5-4 C-USA), falling in run-rule fashion in the series finale.
However, the Thundering Herd secured its first series win over ECU since April 6, 2008, by winning the first two games of the series on Friday.
The Herd will head back to Huntington, W.Va. to play Miami (Ohio) Wednesday at 4 p.m.
ECU 9, Marshall 1 (6)
The Pirates took advantage of early Marshall errors to take a quick 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning.
After a leadoff walk, a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt followed and allowed runners to reach second and third. Marshall recorded two outs quickly, but an error would result in ECU taking a 1-0 lead.
After a scoreless third, the Pirates stretched the lead in the bottom of the fourth off of a lead-off home run, an RBI single and a two-out, two-RBI single to put the Pirates up 5-0.
Marshall found its way onto the scoreboard in the top of the fifth after a lead-off walk from sophomore Katalin Lucas (Agua Dulce, Calif.) and a fielding error put the Herd on first and third. With two outs threatening the side, a fielder's choice brought in Lucas to shrink the Pirates' lead to 5-1.
ECU answered in the bottom of the inning, taking back its five-run lead and adding another with a one-out, two-run homer, to lead 7-1.
Marshall struggled to find a way on base and across the plate, but managed a bases-loaded opportunity in the top of the sixth and, yet, was unable to score.
The Pirates continued to use the Herd's mistakes to their advantage, scoring on a two-out fielding error in the bottom of the sixth after a lead-off walk started the inning. With the mercy-rule runner on second and advancing on a wild pitch, she crossed the plate on a Marshall throwing error to end the game in six innings via a 9-1 score.
Freshman Jordan Dixon (Edmond, Okla.) suffered the loss (6-12) behind four Thundering Herd errors. Marshall was outhit 7-to-3 by the Pirates, and ECU only committed one error.
