LAFAYETTE, La. – The Alcorn State University softball program dropped four contests this past weekend, two to 18
th-ranked Louisiana, at the Ragin' Cajuns Invitational at Lamson Park. The Lady Braves had five student-athletes hit over .300 (min. 6 AB) by the conclusion of the event.
Junior
Taylor Hughes spearheaded Alcorn (3-13) with six hits including two doubles in 10 at-bats. Senior
Montana Holyfield (.400), junior
Mariah Ortiz (.400), senior
Courtenay Holt (.375) and junior
Jessica Crum (.333) also topped the .300 mark.
Crum and junior
Robin Harrison produced a team-high three RBIs. Hughes and sophomore
Victoria Tyler secured the team's most total bases with eight.
Game 1 – No. 18 Louisiana 8, Alcorn 0 (5 inn.)
Senior
Vanessa Sanders recorded hits in both of her at-bats as the Lady Braves dropped their first game to the Ragin' Cajuns (17-4). Crum, Holt, and seniors
Sametria Collins and
Montana Holyfield also earned one hit apiece in the contest.
UL-Lafayette scored at least one run in each of the first four innings and tallied three extra-base hits which included two homers.
Ragin' Cajuns pitcher Macey Smith picked up the win as she allowed just four hits in four innings pitched.
Game 2 – North Dakota State 7, Alcorn 0
The Lady Braves were unable to get going offensively in their second game of the weekend, totaling just three hits. Hughes singled to right in the first and ripped a double to left-center in the seventh. Holyfield reached on an infield single in the fifth.
Outside of three rough innings, junior
Madi Creed retired the Bison (6-13) in order in the third and fifth and allowed only a double in the sixth.
NDSU's ace Jacquelyn Sertic whiffed 13 of the 24 batters she faced en route to her third shutout of the season.
Game 3 – Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 7, Alcorn 6
The Lady Braves outhit the Islanders (5-12) 14-9 in this game and led 6-5 going into the top of the seventh.
Alcorn scratched three runs in the first on a two-RBI single through the right side by Holt and a Harrison sacrifice fly.
AMCC responded by scoring three in the top-half of the second to tie the game.
Harrison and Ortiz hit RBI singles in the third to put the Lady Braves back ahead 5-3 before the Islanders again found two runs to tie the contest at five.
Harrison plated Holt on an RBI single to center in the fifth to give Alcorn a 6-5 edge, but AAMC led off the top of the seventh with back-to-back solo homers to take the lead.
Senior
Catherine Gore hit a double to right-center field to commence the bottom half, but the next three Lady Braves were retired to end the game.
Game 4 – No. 18 Louisiana 14, Alcorn 4 (5 inn.)
Despite giving up three runs between the first two innings, the Lady Braves took a 4-3 lead in the third after Crum hit a three-run homer to left and Tyler followed with a solo shot to center.
Unfortunately an 11-run bottom-half gave the Ragin' Cajuns breathing room. Creed retired Louisiana in order in the bottom of the fourth and allowed just two hits in 1.1 scoreless innings of relief.
Ortiz finished the game with two hits.
--
Alcorn will have a nine-day layoff from competition before hosting Eastern Kentucky University in a doubleheader at the Alcorn Softball Complex on March 14. First pitch is set for 11 a.m.
#FearTheBrave
