AIKEN, S.C. — Kyra Gipson continued to be the Flagler College softball team's workhorse in the circle, while the offense backed up its ace to pace the Saints in a pair of Peach Belt Conference wins, 5-4 and 17-11, over USC Aiken Saturday.
The Saints (8-8, 2-0 PBC) made each win rather exciting as the first came down to the final out and the second featured the offense's best showing so far with 17 runs on 16 hits. Both games had one thing in common: Gipson securing her sixth and seventh victories in the circle.
Game One
The Saints carried a 4-0 lead — via a double from
Bella Munoz, a two-run home run from
Alyssa Velez, and a solo shot from
Kyleigh Taylor — into the bottom of the fifth but that's when USC Aiken (0-6, 0-4) made things interesting. A trio of walks, an error, and a home run knotted it at 4-all in that same frame to put Gipson and Flagler in a tough spot.
But like the offense did all day, it showed up and this time with a little help from the Pacers. The game-winning run was scored by
NaJah Gerrald, who reached thanks to an error and scored via another, and then Gipson (W, 6-2) shutdown a seventh-inning threat to secure the game one victory. All four of the Pacers' runs scored weren't earned for the senior righty as she struck out six and allowed eight hits.
Offensively, Velez and Taylor each had two hits to lead Flagler.
Mercedes Salinas scored on Velez' second home run of the season, while
Valerie Beltre scored on Munoz' RBI-single.
Game Two
Flagler took its seven-hit, opening game and doubled it and then some in the night cap. In the beginning of this one, it appeared the Saints were out of it early, but they never lost faith.
Even after the Pacers took a 9-2 lead into the third inning, Flagler came right back with more firepower.
Madelyn Wise,
Sidney Mathis, and
Taylor Scott all saw time in the circle through the first three innings, and then Gipson (W, 7-2) took over following an eight-run fourth inning to re-take the lead, 10-9.
Kirsty Granville's leadoff walk jumpstarted the fourth-inning surge and Velez' second blast — this one a three-run dinger — of the day gave the Saints the one-run lead. USC Aiken went on to re-take the lead in the fifth inning, but another Flagler home run knotted it again. This blast was from Murphy as the senior sent it over center field to keep the Saints neck-and-neck.
Gipson used a 1-2-3 inning to keep things tied, then the offense exploded again with a six-run seventh. Beltre's triple plated Gerrald for what was the game-winning run and the Saints poured it on from there. Murphy smashed another home run,
Paige Maseda doubled in a run, and Granville hit an RBI-single to cap the 17-run outing that the Pacers' trio of pitchers couldn't contain.
Murphy led the Saints with three runs scored, four hits and four RBI, while Velez had a hit, three RBI and four walks. Munoz had three hits, including a triple, three runs scored and a pair of RBI as Beltre scored three runs, Gerrald scored twice and had two hits and Maseda had a pair of hits and one run scored. For Gipson, she tossed four innings — for 11 total on the day — while allowing two runs on three hits and striking out three more.
Up Next: The Saints welcome No. 1 North Georgia for a PBC noon doubleheader Monday, March 22 at Saints Field.
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