CARROLLTON, Ga. – The University of West Florida softball team split its doubleheader against West Georgia on Saturday, with strong pitching in each game. The Argonauts are now 27-12 and 19-7 in the Gulf South Conference, while West Georgia is 23-12 on the year with a 17-9 GSC mark.
 
West Florida got solid outings from all three pitchers in each game, along with some power at the plate in Game 2. Grace Gilbert, Kelsey Sweatt, and Montana Young combined for a 1.62 ERA and allowed just nine hits over 13.0 innings against a powerful West Georgia offense.
 
The team's five home runs on the day gave the Argonauts 42 for the year – the third-highest single-season mark in program history.
 
Ally Merrill set a handful of career bests in Game 2, going 3-for-3 with two doubles, a home run, and a career-high 4 RBIs.
 
And Teala Howard stretched her hitting streak to 10 games on Friday, going a combined 4-for-6. She is 20-for-36 in those 10 games, batting .556 and slugging .694, while leading UWF in hits (20), runs (14), and doubles (5).
 
UWF wraps up the series on Saturday with a 1 pm ET first pitch from University Field in Carrollton.
 
GAME 1: UWF 1, West Georgia 2
The Argonauts got a strong performance from Grace Gilbert in Game 1, as the Chipley, Florida, native went the distance in the circle with just four hits allowed.
 
Gilbert and UWG starter Kya Draper matched zeroes through the first four innings, with just three combined hits for the two teams. West Georgia broke through in the bottom of the fifth, with a two-run single by outfielder Madison Slappey to break the scoreless tie.
 
UWF did not go down easily though, as Mika Garcia blasted her fourth home run of the season to cut into the UWG lead and make it 2-1.
 
Unfortunately for UWF, that would be the only offense the Argonauts could manage in Game 1.
 
Gilbert took the tough-luck loss and dropped to 7-6, and Friday marked her fifth consecutive start with two or fewer runs allowed.
 
Since March 28, Gilbert has a 1.40 ERA over 30.0 innings pitched, with four complete games and a .173 opponent batting average.
 
GAME 2: UWF 9, West Georgia 2
West Florida's offense wasted no time getting runs on the board in Game 2, with a three-spot in the first inning. It started with a two-run double from Ally Merrill, who finished the day with four RBIs and three hits, including a home run. Merrill stretched the lead to 3-0 in the first after she scored on a wild pitch.
 
Kara Wilson drove in Howard with a single up the middle in the second, to put UWF ahead 4-0, before UWG's Slappey hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the inning to cut into the lead.
 
That home run wouldn't set back UWF at all – the Argonauts hit four homers over the next two innings to extend their lead to 9-2 after four innings. The roundtrippers came from Courtney McLellan and Angela Agurkis in the third, both of which were solo shots, and Merrill and Jacquelynne Poling in the fourth. Merrill's also brought in Wilson, and Poling's was a solo home run.
 
Starting pitcher Kelsey Sweatt had little trouble in her start, striking out three over four innings and allowing just the two-run home run in the second. She improved to 13-3 on the year with the win, giving her the second-most wins in the conference this year.
 
Montana Young threw three innings of scoreless relief, striking out three and allowing just one hit. She earned her third save of the year in the effort, tying the UWF single-season record that is held by four other Argonauts including Sweatt.