SAVANNAH, Ga. (Courtesy: FAMU Athletics) – The FAMU Women’s Softball team split Saturday’s critical Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference doubleheader with Savannah State at Lady Tiger Field,winning the opener, 2-1, before dropping the second game, 12-4, in six innings.
Saturday’s split left FAMU (22-23, 10-1 MEAC) three games up on second placeSavannah State (17-18, 7-1 MEAC) in the Southern Division.
FAMU needs a win Sunday to clinch the series with SSU, and allow them to tighten their grip on first place headed into their season finale in 10 days against Bethune-Cookman (Thursday and Friday, April 28-29).
In Game One, junior centerfielder Whitney Farris scored both FAMU runs, putting the Lady Rattlers ahead 1-0 in the top of the third, after drawing a leadoff walk, stealing second, advancing to third on a fly ball, before coming home on Alexis Day’s RBI single.
Savannah State tied the game, 1-1 with a run in the bottom of the fifth, but FAMU won it in the top of the seventh, when Farris, who reached on a one out single, scored from third on a wild pitch.
FAMU finished Game One with six hits, all singles by Farris, Day, Jessica Nathan, Tashayla Irvis, Amber Fullwood and Kenya Pereira.
Pereira (11-11) got the win from the pitching circle for FAMU, holding Savannah State to one run on just four hits, with four strikeouts and two walks in seven innings.
In Game Two, FAMU fell behind early and never caught up, as Savannah won via eight-run rule, 12-4 in six innings.
The Lady Tigers scored four runs in the bottom of the first off starter Veronica Burse (6-10), who lasted into the third inning, giving up seven runs on six hits, with three walks and a strikeout in two-and-one third innings. Freshman Tahlia Snider came on in relief to work the final three innings, giving up five runs on six hits, with two walks and two strikeouts.
FAMU finished Game Two with seven hits led by Jessica Nathan with two hits. Toni Anderson hit a solo home run to put FAMU on the board in the fourth at 4-1, then Miesha McBride’s three-run double in the fourth cut the Savannah lead in half at 8-4.
The Lady Tigers scored a run in the fourth for a 9-4 lead, then scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth with one out in the bottom of the sixth to end the game at 12-4.
WHAT’S NEXT: FAMU (22-23, 10-1 MEAC) will face Savannah State (17-18, 7-1) in the series finale Sunday at 12 noon here at Lady Tiger Field. Then they will have a 10-day layoff before their final MEAC series begins Thursday, April 28 with a live nationally-televised single game against rival Bethune-Cookman (4:00 p.m.) on ESPNU from the FAMU campus.
