Blazers Rally Late to Take Down MSU
February 25, 2015 | Softball
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – In a back-and-forth affair, Mississippi State softball (13-2) could not control a late UAB (10-5) rally as the Bulldogs fell 5-4 in eight innings on Tuesday night at the UAB Softball Field.
"That was a great game tonight," head coach Vann Stuedeman said. "Credit goes to UAB, they outhit us and outscored us. We were able to string some quality at bats together in the sixth to get on the scoreboard highlighted by a monster Caroline Seitz homerun. Unfortunately it wasn't enough. I'm ready to dust this one off and get back out there."
Getting her first career start inside the circle, freshman Cassady Knudsen allowed two runners two reach in the first, but escaped unscathed. In the second inning, the Blazer bats came to life and recorded two runs on four hits.
Sophomore pitcher Alexis Silkwood entered with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the second, but used a ground ball right to her to complete an inning-ending double play and keep the score at 2-0 through two innings.
Silkwood settled in and did not allow any more Blazers to threaten, but unfortunately for the Bulldogs, UAB starting pitcher Megan Smith was also locked in. Smith did not allow a hit until there were two outs in the third inning.
Leading off the sixth, junior Loryn Nichols used her speed to reach base on an infield single. On a sacrifice bunt from sophomore Amanda Ivy, Nichols advanced to second and a single from junior Katie Anne Bailey placed runners at the corners with one out. Senior Julia Echols proved that the MSU hitters had Smith figured out as she ripped the first pitch she saw off the wall for a two-run double, tying the game at two runs apiece.
Playing back in her hometown, sophomore slugger Caroline Seitz kept the onslaught going as she drove the first pitch she saw high over the left field wall. Her seventh home run of the season plated two and put State ahead 4-2 through six.
In the home half of the seventh, the Blazers battled and with two outs used a two-run double to tie the game up at four and send the game into extra innings.
A walk from Echols and a single from Seitz put the Bulldogs in a favorable position in the top of the eighth, but three straight outs kept the game tied going into the bottom half of the inning. With two outs and runners on first and second in the bottom of the eighth, UAB shortstop Caitlin Attfield drove a ball into the gap that could not be caught as the Blazers captured the 5-4 walk-off win.
In 6.1 innings of relief work, Silkwood (9-1) struck out seven, while allowing six hits and three runs in the losing effort. Cara Goodwin (3-0) got the win for UAB as she went 2.2 innings, allowing just one hit and no runs.
The UAB win brings MSU's all-time series lead to 14-5, with the Blazers having won the last two meetings.
The final five games of MSU's six-game road swing will be played in the Citrus Classic on the ESPN Wide World of Sports Campus in Kissimmee, Fla. The span of five games in three days will start Friday against No. 13 Minnesota at 12:15 p.m. CT with the contest to air live on ESPN3.
For more information on the MSU softball program, follow "HailStateSB" on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. You can also find all-access coverage of the Bulldogs on SnapChat by searching for "HailStateSnap."
