Spartanburg, S.C.- Wofford softball (15-7) split a double header against Gardner-Webb (15-11) on Tuesday, March 11, at Hope Field. The game one win was dominated by Margaret Axelson on the mound while a seventh inning rally by Gardner-Webb stole the game from the Terriers in game two.
Game 1
The Wofford Terriers defeated the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs 6-1 behind a gem of a pitching performance and an early offensive outburst. Margaret Axelson got the nod for game one of the double header and did not disappoint. She tossed a complete game with one run allowed on six hits and did not issue a walk while recording five strikeouts to her name.
The Terriers struck early with a Rivers Sampson double to score Kate Platte. Havalynn Abernathy laid down a perfect bunt to score Sampson two batters later. Gracie Parker would drive Wofford's final run of the inning to put the lead up to 3-0 after the first frame. Kaytlin Greenwood extended the Terriers' margin with a bunt single and a Gardner-Webb error which carried home two Wofford runners in the process. The offense struck again in the fourth frame as a Runnin' Bulldogs wild pitch scored pinch-runner Maizie Gatlin. The 6-0 cushion was more than enough for Axelson to carve up the Gardner-Webb bats, with her only blemish being a seventh inning solo bomb that made the final score 6-1.
Game 2
The Wofford Terriers lost a heartbreaker in a 6-8 extra inning affair in game two of the double header. Abby Greenwood got the start and went 5.2 innings with three runs allowed on five hits. She was relieved by Natalya Salo who went 1.2 innings with five runs given up and three strikeouts. She was followed by Sydney Baker who did not allow a run in the final two-thirds of an inning to close out the game.
The Terrier bats struck in the bottom of the third as they put together four runs in the frame. Sampson, Abernathy, Parker and Campbell all collected RBIs in the initial Terrier offensive breakout. However, the bats went cold as the Runnin' Bulldogs scored three in the fifth and two in the top of the seventh to put them up 5-4 heading into the bottom of the seventh. Wofford freshman Brianna Stanley mashed a clutch solo homerun to straight away center field to tie the game up 5-5 and that sent it to an extra inning. In the top of eighth, freshman Natalya Salo, who had been clutch in so many high leverage spots this season, gave up a three-run dinger to put the Runnin'Bulldogs up 8-5. The Terriers clawed a run back in the bottom of the frame to make the score 8-6 and had the tying runner on base but Gardner-Webb shut the door on the comeback attempt to end the game.
Wofford returns to action Friday, March 14, as they take on South Dakota in the opener of a a three-game series at Hope Field.
