Dahlonega, Ga. —- The Catawba College softball team split its doubleheader with top-ranked North Georgia and Emmanuel on day one of the Captain D's Surf 'N Turf Classic in Dahlonega on Friday afternoon.
GAME ONE | North Georgia 6, Catawba 1
TEAM STATS
- North Georgia out-hit Catawba 12-2
- The Nighthawks recorded all four extra-base hits in the game, including the lone homer
- The Catawba Indians committed both errors in the contest
- UNG had all three steals in the game
- North Georgia's pitchers allowed one earned run on two hits and two walks with three strikeouts; Catawba's staff allowed six earned runs on 12 hits and one walk with four strikeouts
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
- Riley Tucker singled and scored
- Bri Gallagher also recorded a hit
- Kary Hales drove the run home
- Alex Baquie provided three quality innings of relief, allowing one earned run on three hits and three strikeouts
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST INNING
- Tucker singled to lead off the game and Aniyah King bunted her to second
- Gallagher's singled to move her up to third and Hales' RBI groundout gave the Catawba Indians an early 1-0 lead
- Blair's one-out single tied the game in the bottom half for UNG
THIRD INNING
- Three straight singles gave the Nighthawks the lead
- An RBI groundout doubled the UNG lead to 3-1
FOURTH INNING
- UNG's Mixon hit a two-out, two-RBI double to take a 5-1 lead
SIXTH INNING
- Blair homered to left center with two outs in the sixth for the final run scored
GAME TWO | Catawba 11, Emmanuel 4
TEAM STATS
- Catawba out-hit Emmanuel 9-8
- The Lions had two of three extra-base hits with both homers
- EC had the lone error of the game
- Catawba stole the only base of the game
- The Catawba Indian pitchers allowed four earned runs on eight hits and two walks, striking out one; the Lions' staff allowed 10 earned runs on nine hits and seven walks, striking out three
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
- Savanna Balderston was 2-for-3 with a double and five RBI
- King went 2-for-3 with a walk, two RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base
- Bri Herring also had two hits with a run driven in and a run scored
- Baquie earned the win, allowing four earned runs in three innings
- Tucker provided four innings of shutout relief, allowing just two hits and two walks
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST INNING
- The Catawba Indians exploded for seven runs in the first inning
- Herring's single scored Tucker
- Courtnee Carter and Kinsley Caldwell drew back-to-back bases-loaded walks to extend the lead to 3-0
- King's single up the middle scored a run and advanced everyone 60 feet
- Balderston's bases-clearing double made it a 7-0 Catawba lead
SECOND INNING
- Three singles loaded the bases for the Catawba Indians
- King's bases-loaded walk extended the lead to 8-0
THIRD INNING
- Back-to-back Emmanuel homers cut their deficit in half to 8-4 in the third
FOURTH INNING
- King's infield single scored Carter from third
- Balderston's two-RBI single was the final scoring in the game to make it 10-4
UP NEXT
- Catawba wraps up action at the Surf 'N Turf Classic tomorrow with a re-match against #1 North Georgia at noon and West Georgia at 4 p.m.
