PEMBROKE, N.C. | Georgia College & State University split a doubleheader with the University of North Carolina at Pembroke in a pair of non-conference softball contests Saturday (Feb. 28) afternoon at Willoughby Field.
The Bobcats dropped the opener 1-0, while the offense exploded in the nightcap as they rolled to a 7-3 victory.
GCSU improved to 3-7, while the Braves improved to 13-3. The Bobcats return home with a three-game set against No. 5 University of North Georgia for its PBC opener Friday (March 6) at the Bobcat Softball Field.Â
Sydney Garrett cruised through six innings of shutout softball in the opener; however, in the bottom of the seventh, a walk, a hit by pitch, and another walk loaded the bases against the Bobcat starter.Â
A slow ground ball rolled too slow, and Maggie Cunningham scored on a walk-off fielder's choice from Emma Wrenn.Â
Summer Bullard (7-2) threw seven dominant shutout innings for the victory, striking out three along the way. Garrett (2-3) had five strikeouts in her 6.1 innings of work.
Kimber Kent, Maddie Todd, Emily Hobbs, and Sydney Lancaster all had hits in the contest.Â
Chloe Locklead opened the scoring for the Braves in the bottom of the first in the nightcap, driving in Alex Serbio. The Bobcats plated two in the top of the second to begin their scoring on the day, as Sam Story drove in Lancaster on a fielding error, and Karlie Gutierrez later scored on a wild pitch.
GCSU plated another pair in the third, as Emily Hutcheson drove in Todd on an RBI ground out, and Hobbs scored on a Lancaster sacrifice fly. Hutcheson scored on a Lancaster single in the fifth, and Lancaster later came around to score on a wild pitch in the fifth as well.
Gutierrez ended the Bobcat scoring on the day, driving in Hobbs on a single to right in the top of the sixth.
A pair of runs in the form of Cirstin Calloway and Megan Ellis scored in the bottom of the seventh on a pair of fielders' choices, but that would be all the Braves scored in the inning.Â
Tiffany Caban (1-3) pitched six innings of three-run softball, striking out 11. Annalise Knop escaped more trouble in the bottom of the seventh with two strikeouts for her first save of 2026.Â
Gutierrez led the Bobcats with two hits, while Lancaster tallied two RBI.Â
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About GCSU AthleticsÂ
Owning the top Academic Success Rate among all public colleges and universities in Division II for five consecutive academic years, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GCSU Athletics has won six 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.Â
