The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga won its Southern Conference softball series at Samford with a 9-6 victory Saturday.
UTC (16-21, 2-4) totaled 11 hits and led 7-0 after a four-run first inning featuring Emma Sturdivant’s three-run home run and a three-run fourth highlighted by Ashley Conner’s two-RBI single. The Mocs pulled off double plays in the field in the first and second innings, but the Bulldogs (11-26, 2-3) kept nipping and got within 8-6 with two one-out bases-loaded walks in the bottom of the sixth.
Relief pitcher Paige Patterson gave up the second of those RBI walks but then induced a popout and a groundout to end that threat and retired the Bulldogs in order in the seventh.
J.J. Hamill was 2-for-5 and scored four runs for UTC, and Alyssa Coppinger was 2-for-4 with one run. Brook Womack, Morgan Kazerooni and Devan Brown each had one RBI.
‘ Chattanooga State 6-16, Southwest Tennessee 2-1: At Chattanooga State, Shelby Penning went 5-for-7 with two home runs and eight RBIs as the 18th-ranked Lady Tigers extended their win streak to 18 games with the TCCAA sweep.