TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (February 9, 2017) – Region 8 No. 8 Tallahassee Community College opened its home schedule on Thursday by sweeping a doubleheader with South Georgia State College, winning 6-4 in eight innings and 11-7. Tallahassee is now 7-3 on the season.
In the opener, Tallahassee rallied twice when down to its final three outs. In the bottom of the seventh, Kristin Gunter’s one-out solo home run – her fifth of the season – tied the score at three and sent the game to extra innings.
With the international tie-breaker rule – at the start of each inning, a runner is placed on second base – in effect to start the eighth inning, both teams took advantage.
After a ground out advanced South Georgia State’s runner to third, the Hawks executed the safety squeeze to score the go-ahead run and, again, send the Eagles to the brink of defeat.
Trailing 4-3, Tallahassee made quick work of the Hawks in the bottom of the eighth.
Alyssa NeSmith laid down a perfect sac bunt to move Casey Durham to third base. Durham scored on Alyssa Rosenbaum’s single to tie the game. The next batter, Samantha Malik, took an 0-2 pitch over the center field fence for a walk-off homer in the Eagles’ 6-4 victory.
Tallahassee never led until the final pitch of the game.
South Georgia State took advantage of a Tallahassee error to plate a pair of first-inning runs.
Elisa Cecchetti singled home Alycia Smith in the bottom of the third to get Tallahassee on the board, but South Georgia State got the run back in the fourth.
The Eagles answered on Brandie Callaway’s RBI-double in the bottom half. Every player in the Tallahassee lineup had at least one hit, led by Rosenbaum, who went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI. Malik finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs.
Raya Moncus (4-1) went the distance in the circle for Tallahassee to notch her fourth win of the season.
The nightcap had much less drama as Tallahassee scored seven runs in the first inning to erase an early 1-0 deficit en route to an 11-7 victory.
With three runs already in, the Eagles all but put the game away on Callaway’s grand slam for a 7-1 lead.
South Georgia State battled back, scoring one in the second, one in the third and two in the fourth to get within 8-5, but Tallahassee scored twice in the fourth and once in the fifth to regain a comfortable lead.
Tallahassee managed only six hits in game two but took advantage of nine walks issued by South Georgia State.
Rosenbaum was 2-for-4 with a run scored and one driven in. Callaway was 1-for-1 with two runs scored and five RBIs. Callie Paine (3-1) went the distance in the circle to earn the victory for the Eagles.
Up next for Tallahassee is a trip to Marianna, Fla., on Saturday for two games at the Florida Public Utilities Classic hosted by Chipola College.
The Eagles will play NJCAA No. 14 College of Southern Idaho at 1:30 p.m. eastern and Wallace (Ala.) State Community College-Hanceville at 6 p.m.
