Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Troy
@HerdSB Slugs its Way to Two 8th Inning Wins
2/14/2016 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)
Coach Stanton Post Game
Troy, Ala. - Marshall softball gets the 2016 season off to powerful start in two eighth inning victories. The Herd (2-0) took down Alabama State (1-3) by a walk-off home run 4-2 and then host school Troy University (3-1) 7-5.
Game 1: Marshall 4, Alabama State 2 - 8 Innings
Game one began as a defensive and pitching battle between the Herd and the Hornets. Junior Morgan Zerkle (Milton, W.Va.) recorded the first hit of the game and the season in the bottom of the first inning. Senior Kaelynn Greene (Eastvale, Calif.) picked up where she left off the 2015 season with a base hit as well as extending her hitting streak, including the end of this past season, to 17 games.
The Herd picked up two more hits in the third with senior Raquel Escareno (Wellington, Colo.) who led off with a single to right field. Zerkle came through with her second hit of the game, but the Herd could not punch across any runs.
Junior Jordan Dixon (Edmond, Okla.) kept the Hornet batters off balance allowing only two hits through the first six innings.
Alabama State scored first with a solo home run in the top of the seventh. However, the Herd bats would not go quietly as sophomore Taylor McCord (Gilbert, Ariz.) crushed her first career home run over the left field wall to tie the game at 1-1 and send it to the eighth inning.
The international tie breaker rule came into effect in the eighth. The Hornets scored one run to take the lead 2-1 into the bottom of the inning. Freshman Abigail Estrada (Torrance, Calif.) was placed at second base to run for senior Alyssa Woodrum (West Hamlin, W.Va.). Estrada reached third from a sacrifice bunt by Escareno. Next, sophomore Madi Marshall (St. Albans, W.Va.) stepped up and put down a perfectly placed bunt for a single and scored Estrada from third to tie the game at 2-2.
Finally, freshman Briana Daiss (Clermont, Fla.) was brought in to pinch hit and blasted a two-run shot over the wall in right to give the Herd the walk-off win.
Dixon went the distance and struck out six batters to earn the first win of the season.
Taylor McCord received the Dot Hicks Significance sticker for her performance behind the plate and hitting the two-out, seventh inning home run to tie the game at one and send it to extra innings.
Game 2: Marshall 7, Troy 5 - 8 Innings
Unlike the first contest, game two started with some fireworks. Morgan Zerkle and sophomore Elicia D'Orazio (Clermont, Fla.) got things going with two base hits. Taylor McCord came up next with a RBI single to center scoring Zerkle. Sophomore Jordan Colliflower (Huntington, W.Va.) came in to pinch run for McCord and stole second to give the Herd two runners in scoring position.
The hero from game one, Briana Daiss sent a shot into left center that scored both D'Orazio and Colliflower giving the Herd a 3-0 lead.
The Trojans then tied the game at three in the bottom of the first.
Marshall broke the tie in the third as D'Orazio led off with a single and stole second with Daiss coming up to the plate. Daiss recorded her second hit of the game and her third RBI as D'Orazio scored from second. Two batters later Escareno singled to center that brought in Daiss to give the Herd a 2-run lead.
Troy threatened in the bottom of the fourth loading the bases with no outs. Jordan Dixon came in for freshman Ali Burdette (Buffalo, W.Va.) and proceeded to get the Trojan batters to go down 1-2-3 with two strikeouts and no runs crossed the plate.
The Trojans fought back to tie the game at five in the bottom of the seventh to send the Herd to a second straight extra inning ball game.
McCord stepped out to second base as the final out of the seventh inning for the international tie-breaker rule. Then the freshman slugger Daiss sent a laser blast to center field to give the Herd the lead at 7-5. The Herd defense stepped in and held the Trojans scoreless through the final three outs to get the victory.
Dixon gained her second win of the day and the year pitching five innings with six more strikeouts. She has 12 strikeouts through the first two games and 565 for her career.
Senior Katalin Lucas (Agua Dulce, Calif.) came through defensively for the Herd in both contests totaling seven assists and two putouts. Lucas made great plays all over in the hot corner taking away possible base hits from both the Hornets and the Trojans.
Briana Daiss received the Dot Hicks Significance sticker after going 3-for-4, scoring two runs, a double, the go-ahead eighth inning home run and five RBI.
Next up the Herd will travel to Fort Myers, Fla. for the Four Points by Sheraton Invitational hosted by Florida Gulf Coast University Feb. 19-21. First game for will be against LIU-Brooklyn Thursday Feb. 19 with first pitch scheduled for 11:15 a.m. ET.
