App State softball extended their win streak to 6 games with a pair of run-rule victories in Charleston, South Carolina. The Mountaineers used a 9-run first inning to overpower the College of Charleston 12-2 Tuesday, then took advantage of 2 home runs by senior infielder Makayla McClain to defeat Charleston Southern University 10-0 Wednesday.
The Mountaineers pounced on the Cougars in the first inning of their matchup. After the first two batters of the game got on base, junior infielder Grace Barrett hit an RBI single to begin scoring.
Sophomore catcher Leah Gore was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, then freshman utility player Madison Fletcher, who served as the designated player in both games, smacked an RBI single, making the score 3-0.
With the bases still loaded, sophomore infielder Emilie Ching scored on a throwing error by the Cougars’ catcher. Sophomore outfielder Julia Girk ripped a 2-run triple down the left field line, then scored on a muffed catch by the Cougars’ first baseman shortly after.
Junior outfielder Macy Hamby, who played left field in both games in Charleston, shot an RBI single to left field that drove in McClain. Barrett notched her second RBI base hit of the inning for the ninth and final run of the first inning that saw 13 Mountaineers come to the plate.
Hamby made a spectacular diving catch in left field for the first out in the bottom of the first inning, but that didn’t stop the Cougars from getting a run across.
Hamby continued her excellent afternoon in the top of the third inning, hitting an RBI single to left-center field for App State’s tenth run of the game. Fletcher recorded an RBI groundout in the top of the fourth inning, and the Mountaineers tacked on one more in the fifth inning on a base hit by freshman infielder Taylor Schafer.
The Cougars scored on a base hit in the bottom of the fifth inning, but that was the last run they’d get against freshman right-handed pitcher Camryn Fisher. Fisher threw a 5-inning complete game and the Mountaineers cruised to a 12-2 victory.
App State handled business against Charleston Southern University, as McClain launched 2 home runs to lead the Mountaineers to a 10-0 shutout win in five innings.
McClain blasted one over the left field wall on the second pitch of the game, giving App State an immediate lead.
After Girk singled to open the top of the third inning, McClain was at it again, crushing her twelfth home run of the year, a 2-run shot to give the Mountaineers a 3-0 advantage.
Senior left-handed pitcher Sophie Moshos dazzled in the circle, allowing just 3 hits in 5 innings, all of them in the bottom of the third inning. The Buccaneers loaded the bases in the third, but Moshos wiggled out of the jam with back-to-back popouts.
Hamby drew a bases-loaded walk in the top of the fourth inning, then Barrett cracked a 2-run single to extend App State’s lead to 6-0.
McClain drove in 2 more runs in the fifth inning with her third hit of the day. Barrett knocked in App State’s ninth run with a single, and McClain made it a double-digit lead when she scored at the same time Barrett stole second base.
Moshos made quick work of the Buccaneers in the bottom of the fifth, and App State won 10-0 for their sixth straight victory.
The Mountaineers begin Sun Belt Conference play Mar. 13-15 with a 3-game series in Conway, South Carolina against the reigning conference champions in Coastal Carolina University. All 3 games will be streamed live on ESPN+.
