Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 by Mark Jagord, sports information assistant
PEMBROKE, N.C. – The Georgia College softball team (23-7, 2-2 PBC) split a pair of Peach Belt Conference (PBC) games at the UNC Pembroke (17-13, 5-3 PBC) Saturday at LRA Field. The Bobcats were leading midway through the first game before falling 4-2, but rebounded 8-7 in the second game as senior Whitney Okvist (Kennesaw, Ga.) reached No. 11 on the NCAA Division II all-time stolen bases list.
In the first game, the Bobcats got single runs in the third and fourth innings, but a four-run fifth inning by the Braves was too much to overcome.
The Bobcats took the lead with a Kristen Brooks (Brunswick, Ga.) solo home run in the third. The following inning, freshman Faith Flanders (Dublin, Ga.) doubled and a Danielle Bernstein (Cumming, Ga.) single scored another run for a 2-0 lead.
Georgia College made too many mistakes in the lone inning they surrendered runs. The Braves' first batter reached on a Bobcat fielding error. Two other times later in the inning, UNC Pembroke runners advanced via a passed ball and wild pitch. The end result was a four-hit, four-run fifth inning for the Braves who held on the rest of the way for the win.
Georgia College posted five hits in the first contest, led by a pair from Bernstein. Freshman Carly Lewis (Semour, Tenn.) (9-5) took the loss, going the distance while allowing five hits and two earned runs with seven strikeouts.
In the second game, the Bobcats went down 1-0 after two innings, but scored runs in the next four and held on for an 8-7 win. Although Georgia College was out-hit 15-12, the Braves committed four errors that proved to be the difference.
The game was highlighted by the Bobcats' two three-run innings and Okvist's three stolen bases. The senior now has 151 career stolen bases and needs just one more to enter the NCAA Division II all-time top-10.
Okvist led the team in hits the second game with three, while sophomore Abi LeRoy (Dublin, Ga.) and Brooks each had a pair. LeRoy and sophomore Taylor Campbell (Warner Robins, Ga.) each had two RBI and sophomore Marisa Boyette (Marietta, Ga.) was credited with the win. Boyette (8-3) allowed eight hits, four runs with four strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings.
Georgia College will resume PBC play with a doubleheader at Francis Marion University tomorrow, March 23 starting at 11 a.m.
The Georgia College Department of Athletics, two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup, sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' multiple appearances in post-season competition as well as documented academic success and community-service involvement. Sign up at @GCBobcats on Twitter and Facebook for up-to-the-minute reports, and visit GCBobcats.PhotoReflect.com to purchase photo prints from home athletic contests.
