The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga softball team ran its record to 4-0 with two shutout wins Saturday at the Plainsman Invitational in Auburn, Ala.
UTC beat Appalachian State 3-0 and wrapped up the second day of the season with a five-inning 13-0 rout of Alabama-Birmingham and a no-hitter by freshman pitcher Cori Jennings.
Senior Taylor Deason pitched a five-hitter with nine strikeouts and no walks against ASU’s Mountaineers, when UTC went ahead in the bottom of the third inning as senior Marina Wilkerson walked and scored on a double by Sam Taylor. The Mocs added two runs in the sixth on an RBI single by Criket Blanco and a run scored by Sarah Beth Roberts on a wild pitch.
After an uneven college debut in relief during Friday’s win over George Washington, Jennings was sharp against UAB. The left-hander struck out three and allowed two walks in the no-hitter.
Catcher Anyssa Robles went 2-for-3 with two home runs and five RBIs, and Roberts was 3-f0r-3 with a homer, three RBIs and three runs scored. Freshman Kailey Palazzolo was 2-for-2 with three RBIs, and Nicole Osterman and Blanco also had RBIs for the Mocs, who scored their 13 runs on 10 hits off three pitchers.
UTC will wrap up play in the Plainsman Invitational today at 4 p.m. against No. 20 Auburn.
At Atmore, Ala., Chattanooga State began its season by beating Navarro 10-8 in 10 innings and Gulf Coast State 14-0 in five on Friday, and the Lady Tigers added a 5-2 win over Shelton State in the first of three games Saturday. Sharlene Godoy pitched a six-strikeout two-hitter between games in which Hanna Manley won in relief of Morgan Boggess.
Shannon Plese hit a grand slam in the opener and went 2-for-3 with four runs scored against Gulf Coast, when Izzy McCurry was 2-for-3 with two home runs and five RBIs, Courtney Styles homered and drove in two runs and Courtney Crawford was 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. Styles was 2-for-3 with two runs against Navarro, and Katy Richardson had two hits, two RBIs and a run.
Against Shelton State, Crawford was 3-for-4 with an RBI and Plese also batted in a run.
At St. Augustine, Fla., leadoff batter Amanda Lynn scored three runs in each game and Dominique Hannah went 5-for-8 with two doubles, five RBIs and three runs scored as Lee University beat Barton College 8-1 and 9-0 in the first day of Flagler’s tournament.
Leigh Beatenbough and Brianna Eichbaum combined to pitch a four-hitter in the opener, and Angie Hughes pitched a six-inning three-hitter with 10 strikeouts in game two, when NiaRaye Ceasar tripled and singled and matched Hannah’s three RBIs. Emily Dagnan was 2-for-3 with two RBIs in the first game.