The ETSU softball team hung in with nationally ranked Tennessee on Tuesday night, but the No. 12 Lady Vols scored two unearned runs on a Marissa Hardy fielding error in the third and picked up three insurance runs in the sixth to come away with the 5-0 victory at Lee Softball Stadium in Knoxville.
With the loss ETSU dropped to 23-19 on the year, while Tennessee improved its mark to 34-9-1 and have now won 62 straight against in-state non-conference foes.
Hardy suffered the loss as her record fell to 13-10 on the season. Hardy allowed five runs on eight hits and struck out six.
Tennessee’s freshman pitcher Cat Hosfield tossed her fifth shutout of 2009 and improved to 25-8 as a starter this season. Hosfield allowed four hits, struck out four and issued no walks.
Hardy kept the Lady Vols in check early on after tossing two scoreless innings of one-hit ball.
The Tennessee hitters worked some deep counts in that stretch, but Hardy kept her composure and held the Vols scoreless for the first two frames – until she issued a third-inning walk to junior third baseman Nicole Kajitani and had trouble fielding bunt from junior center fielder Kelly Grieve.
Junior first baseman Tiffany Huff then came to the plate and drove in the game’s first run with an RBI single to left. The Lady Vols tacked on one more run when freshman designated player Jessica Spigner’s bunt sent Grieve home to make it a 2-0 contest.
Junior Cheniece Cason extended her hitting streak to five straight games and posted ETSU’s first hit with her leadoff single to center in the fourth.
Hosfield, however, answered by retiring the next three Lady Buccaneer hitters she faced to keep ETSU scoreless in the frame.
The Lady Bucs had their first and only scoring threat in the fifth, but couldn’t manage to push a run home after placing runners on second and third with one out.
Freshman third baseman Amy Campbell led off with a single to left and senior infielder Jessie Hackworth reached on a fielder’s error. Hackworth hit a grounder to third, and when Kajitani recovered to throw to Erinn Webb at second, Campbell was called safe after Webb bobbled the ball.
However, after senior designated player Cat Zyskowski laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, Hosfield worked out of the jam by striking out pinch hitter Katie Henderson and inducing freshman shortstop Chelsea O’Connor into an inning-ending grounder to third.
Tennessee broke the game open and added on three insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth and extended its lead to 5-0.
Kajitani drove in a pair of Lady Volunteer runners on her two-out double to right-center and Grieve plated a run on her infield single to third.
Cason, Campbell and senior outfielder Kate Powell recorded all four of ETSU’s hits with Campbell going 2-for-3, marking her 10th multi-hit game of the season.
Kajitani finished 1-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs, while Grieve went 2-for-3 with a run scored, RBI and three stolen bases.
The Lady Bucs will return to Johnson City for their next game against Virginia Intermont on Friday at 6 p.m. inside the ETSU Softball Complex.

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