VALDOSTA, Ga. – Meghan Toney extended her hitting streak to 11 games and Rhiannon Sassman reached for the 15th consecutive game on Sunday afternoon, in the University of West Florida softball team's 8-2 loss at No. 6 Valdosta State.
 
UWF fell to 9-6 on the year with a 1-5 mark in Gulf South Conference play for the year.
 
The game was a traditional pitchers' duel through the first three innings, with the teams totaling just three combined hits. One of those hits was a leadoff triple in the second inning from Sassman, but VSU pitcher Kathryn Carter was able to escape that jam unharmed. Sassman would later walk in each of her other two plate appearances, making her the game's only starter to reach base every time she came up.
 
UWF ran into some trouble in the fourth, starting with a leadoff walk from Valdosta State center fielder Taylor Hartenbach. Hayley Cruthers then reached on a hard hit grounder that resulted in a tough play for Toney at second, and the pair came around to score later in the inning. VSU put two more on the board in the fifth, giving the Lady Blazers a 4-0 lead after five frames.
 
Toney singled to start the sixth, and Kathleen Smiley cut the VSU lead in half with an opposite field home run, making it 4-2 with two outs. VSU extended the lead to 8-2 with a four-run sixth, which came on four hits and three UWF errors.
 
Freshman Baleigh Boltz recorded a pinch-hit single in the seventh to give UWF its fourth and final hit of the day.
 
Becca Taylor's record fell to 5-4 on the year, as she allowed four earned runs across her six innings of work. The senior leads UWF with a 3.07 ERA through the first month of play and has posted an impressive .260 opponent batting average.
 
West Florida will host North Alabama next Saturday and Sunday for Military Appreciation Weekend at the UWF Softball Complex.