College of Charleston
Youngstown State (DH)
Cougars Split Twin Bill With Youngstown State
3/12/2015 3:07:00 AM | Softball
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – The College of Charleston softball team split a mid-week twin bill with Youngstown State on Wednesday night at Patriots Point.
Senior ace Hope Klicker (Walla Walla, Wash.) earned her second shutout of the season pitching six innings in the circle as the Cougars (12-11) took game one, 5-0. Klicker struck out eight and improved to 6-8 on the year.
“We had really good pitching (in game one),” CofC Head Coach Linda Kalafatis said. “Hope (Klicker) threw a really good game and Alex Pizzoli also provided us with a clean inning (in the top of the seventh). We were able to play clean behind both of them.”
CofC saw the return of freshman leadoff hitter and left fielder Taylor Dupree (Evans, Ga.), who made her first appearance after missing the last seven games due to injury. Dupree had three hits including a RBI and one run scored.
Senior catcher Mackenzie Maples (Corona, Calif.) and junior centerfielder Rebecca Mueller (Fair Oaks, Calif.) also contributed to the team's shutout with RBI doubles in the bottom of the fourth and third respectively.
“Today, we were able to score more runs,” CofC Head Coach Linda Kalafatis said. “We have been playing with a few players down, but having Taylor (Dupree) back was a huge boost to our offense and she was able to get on-base a ton. Offensively, we took advantage of a couple of miscues by Youngstown State and put enough hits together to score five runs. That's how we want to start every game.”
In game two, the Cougars got off to a 2-0 start behind a solo home run to left field by freshman right fielder Sara Garcia (Santa Monica, Calif.) in the bottom of the second.
Things started to unfold in the third as Youngstown State tied up the ballgame at 2-2 with bases loaded and no outs against sophomore pitcher Samantha Martin (Tallahassee, Fla.). Junior Valerie Cassell (Edison, N.J.) would come into in the circle in relief, but the Penguins would advance their runners on two infield errors and a walk to score three more runs. Cassell was able to strike out two Youngstown batters to get out of the seven-run inning.
“The second game didn't play the same way as we would have liked as the first,” Kalafatis said. “Unfortunately, we had to pull Sam (Martin) out due to injury. She started the game well, but her injury led her getting into trouble (in the top of the third).”
The Cougars would find their bats in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings, but it wasn't enough for the comeback. Garcia and junior designated player Carly Hansis (Little River, S.C.) each had triples, while Maples and junior first baseman Chandler Frisbie (Lawrenceville, Ga.) had doubles resulting in RBIs.
It marked the first time this season that the Cougars would use all four of their pitchers, including Pizzoli and Klicker in the top of the seventh, as Youngstown State came away with the 11-7 victory in the nightcap. Ashley Kozial picked up the win for the Penguins, while Martin was credited with the loss.
“We didn't play clean and Youngstown State was able to put some hits on the board,” Kalafatis said. “We can't give up 11 runs. We have to play better. Credit to them as they were able to take advantage of our mistakes.”
CofC will next host the six-team CofC Invitational on March 13-15 at Patriots Point. The Cougars will open the tournament with Wisconsin on Friday, March 13 at 8 p.m. (ET). Memphis, Marist, New Mexico and Furman round out the tourney field.
“This may be the strongest tournament that we have hosted this spring,” Kalafatis said. “We are going to be challenged and have to find some consistency for sure heading into the weekend.”
