MONROE, La. -- The ULM softball team (23-15, 6-4 Sun Belt) won its fourth-straight conference game after erasing a two-run deficit in the fourth inning versus Georgia Southern (20-14, 4-6) with a 7-3 win on Friday (April 5) night at the ULM Softball Complex. The Warhawks scored six runs in the fourth inning to seize control of the lead highlighted by
Layla Thompson's go-ahead three-run home run.
The Eagles scored one run in the top of the first inning on a bases loaded walk surrendered by ULM starting pitcher
Maddie Nichols. ULM answered in the bottom half of the first when
Andie Edwards delivered an RBI sacrifice bunt that scored
Lourdes Bacon that evened the score. Nichols punched out her first batter of the night to end the top half of the second before the Warhawks went down in order to complete the inning. The Eagles retook the lead in the top of the third after scoring on a passed ball and an RBI base hit by Delanie Thames to go up 3-1. Bacon and
Carys Platt both singled with two outs in the bottom half of the third, but the Eagles preserved the 3-1 lead.
After
Kassidy Giddens pitched a 1-2-3 fourth inning,
Andie Edwards and
Elle Carter both singled to begin the Warhawks' fourth. On a 1-2 count,
Layla Thompson blasted a three-run home run and hit her second home run of the season to pull ULM ahead with one swing of the bat, 4-3.
Jacelyn Buck kept things rolling with a base hit up the middle.
Brooklin Lippert reached on a fielder's choice and stole second base with two outs. Both her and Bacon scored on the next play after Georgia Southern committed an error on a bunt to give the Warhawks a 6-3 lead. ULM was not done scoring in the inning as
Carys Platt singled and swiped second base and later scored when
Meagan Brown doubled to make it a 7-3 game.
Giddens continued to shut down the Eagles and pitched another scoreless inning in the top of the fifth that featured a strikeout for the second out. Following a scoreless bottom of the fifth, Georgia Southern's leadoff hitter in the sixth reached from a hit by pitch. Giddens forced Georgia Southern to hit into a double play and completed another scoreless inning. Again in the seventh, the Eagles began the inning with a runner on base from a base hit. Thompson turned a double play at third base after snagging a line drive to put ULM one out away from the win.
Gianni Hulett forced Georgia Southern to ground out to Thompson to end the game and give the Warhawks the win in the first game of the conference series.
Thompson delivered the game-winning hit with her three-run blast in the fourth inning and reached base a second time with a walk. Platt finished the night going 3-for-4 and stole a pair of bases to go along with a run scored. Bacon racked up a pair of hits and crossed home plate twice.
Meagan Brown hit her seventh double of the season and drove in her 29th RBI of the year.
In the circle, Nichols began the game and completed two innings and struck out one batter. Giddens was the winning pitcher and improved her record to 6-1. She sat down two Eagles on strikeouts and allowed just three hits in four innings of work. Hulett collected the final three outs of the night and did not allow a hit.
The ULM softball team will face Georgia Southern in game two tomorrow (April 6) at 2 p.m. from the ULM Softball Complex in Monroe. Sunday's game three has been moved to 11 a.m. due to the potential of showers in the Monroe area on Sunday afternoon.
