DAHLONEGA, Ga. | Georgia College & State University was able to come back from an early deficit, but Georgia Southwestern State University scored three runs in the top of the seventh to pick up an 8-6 victory in the quarterfinals of the Peach Belt Conference Softball Tourament on a rainy Friday (May 2) afternoon at Haines & Carolyn Hill Stadium at Lynn Cottrell Park.
The No. 2-seeded Bobcats conclude their season 23-24, while the No. 7-seeded Hurricanes stand at 25-25. Georgia Southwestern awaits the winner between No. 3 seed Flagler College and No. 6 seed Columbus State University in a noon semifinal contest Saturday (May 3) in the single-elimination tournament.
The game was delayed by an hour from its original 11 a.m. start; however, it did not affect the Hurricane bats, as four runs crossed home plate in the first frame, one from a Malone Aldridge RBI single, and later a three-run blast from Cooper Watson.
Caroline Pollock quickly found her way around the bases for the Bobcats, walking to lead off the second inning, and later scoring on an Emily Hutcheson double to trim the deficit to 4-1.
Georgia Southwestern watched another softball leave the yard in the third as Rebecca Hazard hit a solo home run to give the Hurricanes a 5-1 lead.
A Georgia Southwestern error kept the Bobcats alive at the bottom of the fourth, and Reina Checo took advantage, hitting a home run to bring GCSU within one 5-4. It was Checo's second long ball of 2025.
After a second rain delay in the fifth that latest over three hours, the Bobcats did not quit, as Kacie Wiggins completed the comeback in the sixth, singling in Hutcheson and Pollock for the first GCSU lead of the day at 6-5.
The Hurricanes answered back in the top of the seventh, as Madison Banks tied things at 6 with a single through the middle, and a wild pitch brought home Banks and Savana Bradford. The Bobcats willed their way into a bases-loaded scenario with two outs at the bottom of the inning, but could not answer.
Graceanne Spears (11-10) limited the Bobcat bats to two runs following the rain delay, over three innings of work, striking out two.
Hutcheson and Maddie Todd had multi-hit performances, with three and two hits, respectively, while Checo and Wiggins had multi-RBI performances with three and two, respectively.
About GCSU Athletics
Owning the top Academic Success Rate among all public colleges and universities in Division II for three consecutive academic years, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GCSU Athletics has won four consecutive Presidents' Awards for Academic Excellence, and are two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup and four-time winners of the PBC Institution of the Year Sportsmanship Award. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' continued appearances in postseason competition as well as high-level academic success and community-service involvement. Bobcat Athletics embodies the mantra of "Graduating Champions for Life." Sign up at @GCSUBobcats on all social media outlets for up-to-the-minute reports or subscribe to the GSCU Athletics e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and to interact with GCSU Athletics.
