The Mocs’ pitcher Michelle Fuzzard, No. 15, throws against an Elon hitter Saturday at Jim Frost Stadium at Warner Park.The offense got off to another slow start Saturday, but sophomore Stephanie Rieck sparked the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to a 9-2 softball win over Elon to finish a three-game sweep in Southern Conference play at Jim Frost Stadium.
The Lady Mocs (23-13, 8-2) fell behind 2-0 in the first inning when the Phoenix (17-11, 6-6) had three straight hits off pitcher Michelle Fuzzard to open the game, highlighted by Carleigh Nester’s two-run triple.
Elon pitcher Erin O’Shea started strong, holding the Lady Mocs hitless through the first two innings and prompting a stern message from UTC coach Frank Reed.
“I got in their face and challenged them,” he said. “I basically said, ‘Hey, we are playing Division I softball, and I think that we should be able to hit this pitcher because we’ve hit as good or better before.’ And they responded and had a different intensity.”
That intensity initially came in the compact form of Rieck. The 5-foot-3 outfielder got UTC’s first hit of the day — a single to right field in the third inning after freshman Cheyenne Willis worked a one-out walk.