Spartanburg, S.C.- Wofford softball (13-5) took a pair of wins over Buffalo in a 5-4 walk-off victory and Tennessee State by a 16-2 margin on Friday at Hope Field. The win over Buffalo was Wofford's third walk-off victory of the season.
Game 1
Wofford won 5-4 in comeback fashion against Buffalo (2-9) with a Havalynn Abernathy walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh. Natalya Salo got the start in the circle against the Bulls and went four innings, giving up seven hits on three runs with four strikeouts. She was relieved on the mound by Sydney Baker who went three innings with two hits on one run given up. She would go on to earn the win for the terriers which would be the first win in her collegiate career.
The Terriers went down early with a first pitch home run by Buffalo. Wofford would respond in the bottom of the first frame, with an Abbi Campbell bunt single that scored an RBI. The score would remain knotted at 1-1 until the fifth inning, when Buffalo would put up two runs then add another in the sixth to put the Terriers down 4-1 in the middle of the sixth. Wofford clawed two runs back in the bottom half of the sixth with a Hope Ingle solo shot and wild pitch by Buffalo that would score an unearned run to cut the lead to 4-3. In the bottom of the seventh with two outs the Terriers needed a run to tie the game. Senior Hope Ingle delivered a clutch RBI double that tied the game then fellow senior Havalynn Abernathy would drive in the walk off RBI with a single to give Wofford the 5-4 victory.
Game 2
Wofford's offense exploded for a program record 16 runs in a 16-2 rout of the Tennessee State Tigers (5-6) with seven different Terriers driving in at least one RBI.
Abby Greenwood got the circle against the Tigers and turned in a five inning, four hit outing. She allowed two runs with one walk surrendered and four strikeouts to earn the win. The Tigers struck first with an RBI single but after that was all Wofford as Wofford scored the next six runs unanswered. The Terriers would strike back in the bottom of the first with a Brianna Stanley RBI single. The second inning saw the Terriers put five runs on the scoreboard to put Wofford up 6-1 heading into the third. Tennessee State plated one run in the third but would not score for the rest of the game. The Terriers offense broke out in the third inning, hanging nine runs on the Tigers. The frame was capped off by a Havalynn Abernathy grand slam which was the first in Wofford softball history. The Terriers added another run in the fourth to end the game 16-2 in the fifth inning.
Wofford will return to action tomorrow, February 28, as they rematch both Tennessee State at 3:30 pm and North Dakota at 6:00 pm at Hope Field.
