Troy Softball Closes Out Season Against South Alabama

Sunday, May 7

Troy, Ala.

1 PM

Troy University

20-33, 0

South Alabama

32-18, 0

South Alabama

Troy

Troy Softball Closes Out Season Against South Alabama

5/7/2017 6:46:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Grace Bolin

TROY, Alabama- On senior day, and in the last games of the regular season, the Trojans fell to the South Alabama Jaguars 2-0 and 6-4 on Sunday at the Troy Softball Complex. Troy fought back to put the final game within two runs in the bottom of the seventh, but the rally came up just short.

Game one: South Alabama 2, Troy 0

The Trojans (20-34, 8-19 SBC) struggled against junior pitcher Devin Brown in game one, and weren't able to bring a run across the plate.

Both teams were scoreless until the top of the third when a lead off triple put a runner on third for the Jaguars. A single from Kaleigh Todd advanced the runner home to give South Alabama a 1-0 lead. With the bases loaded, Claire Graves pulled off a big strikeout and a fly ball ended the scoring threat.

South (33-18, 15-12 SBC) added its final run of the game with a solo home run from Savannah Mayo to take the final 2-0 lead.

The Trojans put up five hits, but struggled to convert the runs and left nine runners on base throughout game one.

Freshman Katie Webb had a great day at the plate as she went 3-for-4 with three singles. Madeline Porter went 1-for-2 in game one with a single to left field in the sixth inning.

In the circle, Graves earned the start and threw a complete game with two strikeouts and three walks. She took the loss to move to 8-11 on the season.

Game two: South Alabama 6, Troy 4

The Trojans weren't going to go down without a fight in their final game of the 2017 season. Down 6-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning, Troy rallied back and scored three runs, but fell short of the win.

The Jaguars jumped out to an early 4-0 lead as Todd stepped up to the plate with the bases loaded. A base-clearing triple gave South Alabama the momentum as they were also able to score on a sacrifice fly before the Trojans were able to get out of the inning.

South added two more runs in the fourth and seventh innings as they held the Trojans scoreless until Porter hit an RBI double to put the Trojans on the board.

Freshman Logan Calhoun sparked the three-run final inning for the Trojans with a single down the left field line and Cassidy McDilda entered the game to pinch hit and put two runners on with a single to the pitcher. Back-to-back RBI singles from Webb and Snyder put the Trojans within three with two outs. Porter earned her second RBI double of the game to bring another run across for the Trojans, but a pop up to the first baseman ended the campaign for Troy.

Senior Meg Willis was a perfect 2-for-2 at the plate in her final collegiate game for Troy. Webb went 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI. Calhoun went 1-for-2 scoring one run, while Porter went 2-for-4 with two RBIs.

Fifth year senior Rachel Rigney Brown earned her final start in the circle as a Trojan. She threw 6.2 innings with one strikeout on the day and only allowed four of the six runs for the Jaguars.

NOTEWORTHY

• Jordan Gray finishes her career with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage through 28 games this season.
• Becca Hartley finishes her career playing in 215 games starting in all but three. Her 16 home runs tie her for third in a single season and her 39 career homers gives her solo possession of the third place in Troy history. Hartley's 134 career runs rank her ninth all-time and her 122 RBIs rank as fourth most all-time in Troy history.
• Rachel Rigney Brown has made 31 appearances in the circle this season and 91 appearances throughout her career. Her five career saves rank her fifth in the Troy record books. She has recorded 318 innings of work in the circle with 126 career strikeouts.
• Meg Willis finishes her Troy career playing in 119 games. She made 28 appearances in the circle and hit 11 home runs with 38 RBIs. She earned her first career start this season against UT-Arlington throwing a shutout.

QUOTABLE

"This team fought hard their last two games and we just fell short," head coach Beth Mullins said. "We threw really well that first game, and we had good at-bats but just couldn't find timely hits. You have to give these kids credit. I think a lot of the fight today was for the four seniors and they really deserved that. I think all four of our seniors have left their legacy here and this place is better now than when they found it, and you can't ask for anything more."

UP NEXT
Troy will host the Sun Belt Conference Tournament May 10-13 at the Troy Softball Complex. Fans can purchase tickets by visiting TroyTrojans.com/Tickets or calling 877-878-WINS (9467).