MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Argonauts' bats could not be slowed down in the University of West Florida softball team's 11-2 win over Christian Brothers on Saturday. West Florida stands at 26-11 overall and 13-8 in the Gulf South Conference after the weekend sweep. This was the third weekend sweep over a GSC opponent for UWF on the year.
Rachel Wright's two-run double came just after an RBI single from
Kathleen Smiley, giving UWF a 3-0 lead over CBU after the first inning. It was the first of two hits for Wright and the first two of her three RBIs for the day.
The UWF pitching was excellent again, with
Kalyn Chapman and
Sarah Maloney combining for six strikeouts over five innings with just two hits allowed. Chapman picked up her 11th win of the season and holds an 11-5 record on the season. Chapman went the first three innings and finished with four strikeouts, while Maloney handled the final two innings and fanned two.
The offense kept going in the second inning, as UWF put up five runs on seven hits, beginning with back-to-back singles from
Chelsy Krantz and
Caitlin Steel to lead off the inning. Each player stole second base, putting two runners in scoring position for
Emily Pettigrew. Pettigrew singled up the middle and advanced on the throw home to bring in Krantz, and she raised her batting average with runners in scoring position to .406 on the year.
Meghan Toney followed with a bunt single that allowed Pettigrew to come in safely, and
Rhiannon Sassman followed with a single to right field. Chapman then lifted an RBI double to center field, scoring Toney and moving Sassman to third. Smiley chipped in with her second RBI of the day with a grounder to second base, bringing in Sassman. Wright wrapped up the scoring for the inning with a single to left field that scored Chapman and put the UWF lead at 8-0.
UWF had a two-out rally begin in the third to put the final three runs on the board. Pettigrew singled for the third time, and both she and
Meghan Toney, who reached on a walk, were driven in on a double to center field from Sassman. Chapman brought in the final run with a single just one batter later.
Sassman, Chapman and Smiley each had two RBIs on the day, giving each of them a team-best seven multi-RBI games on the year, while Sassman recorded her team-high 12th multi-hit game of the season.
With three hits on the day, Pettigrew has reached in 21 straight games, the longest streak for a UWF player since Karri Bisbee got on in 24 in a row in the 2011 campaign. Pettigrew also has at least one hit in 10 consecutive games.
West Florida stole three bases on the day, with one each from Pettigrew, Krantz and Steel. It is the third time this year that UWF has stolen three times in one game, and the seven Argo steals for the weekend are the most in any three-game stretch for West Florida all season.
UWF continues GSC play in Jackson, Tennessee, next weekend with a series against Union.
For information on all UWF athletics, visit
www.GoArgos.com.
