College of Charleston
Western Carolina
Forbes goes 5-for-5 as Cougars drop 15-14 slugfest with Western Carolina
3/29/2009 4:00:00 AM | Softball
Box Score - Western Carolina vs. College of Charleston
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - Freshman outfielder Katie Forbes (Odessa, Fla.) went 5-for-5 with four RBIs and tied the program record for hits in a game as the College of Charleston (11-18, 4-5) dropped a narrow 15-14 decision to Western Carolina (9-18, 5-4) Sunday, March 29 in the finale of a Southern Conference series in Mt. Pleasant, S.C.
Trailing 13-9 in the sixth inning, the Cougars pounded out four runs on five hits to tie the game at 13-13 after playing from behind the entire contest. In that inning, redshirt junior second baseman Amber Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.) tripled home a pair of runs while senior outfielder Tiffany Harmon (Lynn Haven, Fla.) and junior third baseman Kristie Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.) each added an RBI.
The Catamounts retook the lead in the top of the seventh when back-to-back doubles by senior designated hitter Mollie Fowler and senior first baseman Lauren Ross gave them a 14-13 advantage. It would not last long as Forbes doubled with two outs in the bottom of the inning to put the tying run in scoring position. Freshman outfielder Amanda Lonergan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) then singled home pinch runner Stormie Henderson (Cottondale, Ala.) from second to make it 14-14 and send the game to extra innings.
In that extra frame, Western Carolina struck again, this time with a two-out single down the left field line by freshman shortstop Chelsea Schaffer. She then scored on a double by sophomore infielder Amber Hawkins, who was thrown out at third to end the inning. The Cougars were out on two close plays to begin the bottom of the eighth before a pop out to shortstop sealed the 15-14 victory for the Catamounts.
The Cougars trailed 6-0 through the game's first two innings before rallying with three runs in the bottom of the second and two more in the third to close to within 6-5. The Catamounts then responded with a five run outburst in the top of the fourth inning to push their lead to a commanding 11-5 advantage.
It was the College of Charleston's turn in the home half of the inning as CofC scored four runs on five hits and took advantage of an error to close to within 11-9. The score would stay that way until WCU stretched its lead to 13-9 with a pair of runs in the sixth inning, setting the stage for the Cougars' late inning rally.
For Western Carolina, Lauren Ross and sophomore outfielder Keri Burnside led five Catamounts with three hit days as they both finished the day 3-for-5 with four RBIs and a run. Fowler and Hawkins also had identical lines with 3-for-4, three run, two RBI performances while Chelsea Schaffer rounded out the three-hit outings with a 3-for-5, two run day.
In the circle, Ross pitched six innings of relief, allowing 14 hits and nine runs to come away with the victory and improve to 6-6 on the year. Sophomore pitcher Chere Monday started and went two innings, giving up four runs and five hits to get a no-decision.
Forbes led the Charleston attack with her 5-for-5, four RBI performance that included a pair of doubles. She became only the fourth player in Cougar history to amass five hits in a single game, tying for the program record held by Amanda Cone, Brittany Shepperd and Katie Ballard. All three of those players reached the milestone on February 11, 2004 in a 42-0 victory over Savannah State, a recent Division I transitional program at the time.
In addition to Forbes outstanding performance, Amber Shifflett continued her hot hitting with a 3-for-5, three run, three RBI day that included her 35th career stolen base. That ties her for the sixth most in program history.
Sophomore outfielder Kristi Woodall (Huntersville, N.C.) went 2-for-3 with a run and three RBIs and junior catcher Amanda Maurer (Haubstadt, Ind.) finished 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI. Lonergan, Kristie Shifflett and senior shortstop Christal Kotchman (Seminole, Fla.) each added an RBI on the day.
Junior pitcher Terri Mesko (McDonough, Ga.) started and earned a no-decision despite surrendering 11 runs and 10 hits over 3.2 innings of work. Sophomore pitcher Alexa Datko (San Diego, Calif.) threw 4.2 innings of relief, allowing eight hits and four runs to suffer the loss and fall to 1-1 on the year.
The Cougars return to action when they travel to Appalachian State for a three-game Southern Conference series April 4-5 in Boone, North Carolina.
RECORDS AND SEASON-HIGHS
The Cougars topped a number of season and program records on the day in addition to Forbes five hits. Her five RBIs ties for the tenth most in a single game, accomplished 19 times previously, while the 18 hits as a team ties for the fourth most ever by a College of Charleston softball team. That feat had been accomplished three times before, the last coming on February 18, 2006 against Florida A&M.
Charleston also set several season highs with 14 runs, 18 hits and 14 RBIs, surpassing the previous marks of 10, 14 and 10, respectively, all set in a 10-6 victory over Coastal Carolina on March 22.
The eight innings pitched ties the season-high set twice, last against Charleston Southern on March 18.
Individually, Forbes five hits is a season-high while her five at bats equal the most by any CofC player this season. Forbes' four RBIs were the second highest by a Cougar in 2009.
The 14 runs are the most scored by a CofC softball team since the 2008 squad scored 14 in a 14-4 defeat of Hampton on April 8, 2008. The last time they scored more than that was a 17-0 decision over South Carolina State on March 10, 2007.
