ST. AUGUSTINE – The Flagler College softball team rallied for a pair of wins on Sunday on the final day of the Flagler Invitational at Flagler Field.
Mackenzie Conley belted a two-run home run in the fifth inning to help Flagler defeat Newberry College 5-2 in the first game and then
Maddy Murphy's bases load grounder to third base that was booted allowed the winning run to score in the bottom of the seventh in a 2-1 win over Eckerd College.
Flagler went a perfect 4-0 in the two-day tournament and improved to 11-8 overall. Eckerd finished the tournament with a 3-1 record and left with an overall record of 9-2-1. Newberry went 1-3 and finished with a 9-5 overall record. Tuskegee University left with a 0-4 record in the tournament and its overall record is 0-15.
In the opener, it was a pitcher's duel between Flagler's
Haleigh Corbally and Newberry's Devon Morrison. The Wolves were able to get base runners against Corbally, but had trouble scoring anyone. Morrison retired the first 10 of 11 batters she faced.
Both teams exchanged solo home runs in the fourth inning and Maude McCourry gave Newberry a 2-1 lead in the fifth after an RBI double. In the bottom of the fifth,
Keeley Murray hit a one-out tapper in front of the plate and reached first base. The next batter, Conley, socked the first pitch she saw over the center field fence to give the Saints a 3-2 lead.
Hannah Hudson belted her second home run of the season in the sixth inning and a bases loaded walk capped the scoring for Flagler in the same frame.
Corbally (4-4) tossed five innings, scattered five hits, allowed two runs, walked one and struck out four batters.
Tinsley Smith came on to close the game as she tossed two scoreless innings to earn her fourth save of the season. She struck out two batters and walked one.
Malloree Escue went 2-for-3 with the home run.
Morrison (1-2) was the hard-luck loser for the Wolves. She tossed 5.2 innings, allowed six hits and four earned runs. Morrison fanned two and retired 12 batters on ground outs.
Hailey Drawe hit a solo home run for Newberry while Morgan Sweeney and McCourry each hit a double.
In game two, Eckerd's Nikole Van Gennep had a perfect game going for 5.2 innings.
Rachel Hudson broke it up with an opposite field double to the left-center gap.
Megan Miller came in to run for Hudson and scored on
Whitney Woodard's RBI single to tie the game at 1.
The in the seventh, Escue hit a lead-off single through the left side of the infield.
Hannah Hudson followed with a perfect bunt toward the hole in the infield at second base and the ball found its way to the edge of the outfield grass allowing Escue to scamper into third base, representing the winning run. Hudson stole second and Conley drew a walk to load the bases.
Maddy Murphy hit a 0-1 pitch on the ground just to the left of Eckerd third baseman Chelsea Armstrong. She went down to block the ball, but the ball ran up her left arm and over her shoulder trickling away allowing Escue to score the winning run.
Katelynn Smith (1-1) pitched three scoreless innings in relief, allowing one hit and fanning three to pick up the win.
Callie Reed started and tossed four innings, allowed three hits and one run.
The Saints were limited to four hits by Van Gennep (5-2). She went the distance and allowed two runs with one walk and one strike out. Van Gennep retired nine batters on fly outs and eight more on ground outs.
She helped her own cause by hitting two doubles and driving home a run.
Flagler is scheduled to play a doubleheader on Tuesday (Feb. 23) at Florida Southern College starting at 5 p.m.
