College of Charleston
Charleston Southern
Amber Shifflett breaks Cougars stolen base record in split at Charleston Southern
4/21/2010 10:00:00 PM | Softball
LADSON, S.C. - Redshirt-senior second baseman Amber Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.) broke the program record for steals with her 58th and sophomore outfielder Amanda Lonergan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) belted a pair of homeruns as the College of Charleston (20-20, 7-7) split a double-header with Charleston Southern (24-24-1, 7-8 Big South) on Wednesday, April 21. The Cougars won Game 1 by a 5-2 margin before dropping a 4-1 decision in the nightcap.
The Cougars managed the early 1-0 lead in Game 1as senior catcher Amanda Maurer (Haubstadt, Ind.) led off the inning by reaching on an error, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a hard single to left by junior outfielder Kristi Woodall (Huntersville, N.C.). That lead would not last long as the Buccaneers would strike in the third inning with back-to-back two-out homeruns by first baseman Megan Hall and third baseman Shayla Cullum to take a 2-1 lead.
In the fifth, however, it was the College of Charleston's turn for a two-out rally as Woodall laced a double to the left centerfield gap that scored freshman second baseman Ashton Jarrett (Hanahan, S.C.) and tied the game a 2-2. Senior designated hitter Kristie Shifflett (Virginia Beach, Va.) then belted the 30th homerun of her career, a two-run shot down the right field line, that gave the Cougars a 4-2 lead.
Sophomore outfielder Amanda Lonergan (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) would add to that lead to lead off the sixth as she cranked her team-leading sixth homerun of the season down the right field line to make it 5-2.
Junior pitcher Alexa Datko (San Diego, Calif.), who entered the game following the consecutive homeruns, made that lead hold up as she retired all 13 batters she faced to lock down the three-run victory.
Hall and Cullum had the only hits of the game for Charleston Southern, both of which were solo homeruns. SondraVetter started and went 4.2 innings, allowing four hits and four runs to take the loss and fall to 8-14 on the year.
Kristi Woodall led the College of Charleston with a 3-for-3, two-RBI performance that included a double and career-high tying mark for hits. Kristie Shifflett delivered two RBIs on her fifth homerun of the season while Amanda Lonergan rounded out the scoring with her sixth homerun of the year. Datko threw 4.1 scoreless and hitless innings of relief, retiring all 13 batters she faced to pick up the win and move to 5-9.
The Buccaneers got on the board first in the nightcap as catcher Erin Kegley singled to lead off the second inning, stole second and scored on a single up the middle by Jana Matthews. That lead would hold up until the fourth inning when Lonergan ripped her second homerun of the season to deep right to lead off the frame and tie the game at 1-1.
A double by designated hitter Kristin Kelleher to lead off the fourth inning and a single to right by second baseman Trea Steele put Charleston Southern back on top, 2-1. The Bucs would add a pair of insurance runs in the sixth as Jana Matthews reached on a two-base error and then scored on a double by outfielder Jessica Peters-Brock Outfielder Melissa Adams then singled her home for a 4-1 advantage. That would be all they would need as they retired the Cougars in the bottom of the seventh to record the three-run victory.
Jessica Peters-Brock finished 2-for-3 with an RBI to lead Charleston Southern while Adams, Matthews and Steele each had an RBI to round out the scoring for the Buccaneers. Kimberly Hobbs pitched a complete game and allowed six hits and just the one run and struck out seven to pick up the victory and improve to 9-6 on the season.
For the College of Charleston, Amanda Lonergan had the lone RBI with her solo homerun, her second of the day, while junior first baseman Katie Nutaitis (Vienna, Va.) finished 2-for-3. Amber Shifflett also went 2-for-3 on the day and broke the Cougars' all-time career stolen base mark with the 58th of her career. She passes Brooke Flower's mark of 57 set from 2001-04. Freshman pitcher Stephanie Saylors (Easley, S.C.) started and went 5.2 innings, allowing seven hits and four runs, two of which were earned, and struck out a near career-high tying seven batters to take the loss and fall to 4-2 on the season.
The College of Charleston concludes its five-game road trip this weekend when they head to Statesboro, Ga. for a three-game Southern Conference series with Georgia Southern. The Cougars will play a double-header beginning at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 24 before concluding the series with a 1 p.m. game on Sunday, April 25.
NOTES
Amber Shifflett now has 58 career stolen bases, breaking the College of Charleston program record of 57 previously held by Brooke Flowers (2001-04).
