Looking to get back on track, softball took on conference foe Samford. Coming into the game the Bucs had lost their last four matches.
Samford came into the weekend series winners of their last two games. Coming into the series head coach Brad Irwin mainly wanted the Bucs to improve on hitting and limiting strikeouts.
“They score really well,” Irwin said. “We are going to have to play really good defense and pitch it well.”
In the first game of the series, the Bucs were certainly tested. Samford scored three runs in the first inning. The Bucs went scoreless in the first inning with momentum on Samford’s side.
With the pressure on early, the Bucs needed a strong inning on offense and defense. They did just that in the second inning, not allowing a Samford run and scoring when Jordan Durbin (Mechanicsville, Virginia) scored on a wild pitch to bring the Samford lead down to 3-1.
Nikki Grupp’s (Jacksonville, Florida) home run down the left field line brought in two runners giving the Bucs their first lead 4-3. In the fourth and fifth inning, neither team was able to score.
A home run by Samford tied the game heading into the sixth inning. After a scoreless sixth inning, both teams needed a strong finish. Malloree Schurr (Montgomery, Texas) hit an RBI to bring in a run for a 5-4 lead.
Samford’s offense responded to the adversity well, scoring three on a walk-off three-run home-run score. Samford took the game one series 7-5.
In the second game of the series, the Bucs’ offense was not able to get going, which did not help a struggling defense. Samford scored six runs in the first two innings and finished the sixth and seventh inning with a run each. Samford beat the Bucs 8-0 to take a two-game series lead, securing the overall win after the doubleheader.
On Saturday, the final game of the series didn’t see much improvement from the Bucs. They got on the board with two runs late in the match, but it couldn’t match Samford and fell 10-2.
This weekend, the Bucs will host Furman and play an exciting non-conference game against a ranked University of Tennessee team on Tuesday.
