ETSU softball returned to Betty Basler Field April 2 and 3, as the 13-8 Bucs faced the 5-16 Chattanooga Mocs in a three-game series. The Bucs would eventually fall in three close and competitive games, including dropping an 11-inning heartbreaker to the Mocs on April 3.
The Bucs entered the first game with a 1-2 record in Southern Conference play. Coming off a 1-2 series with University of North Carolina-Greensboro the week before to open their conference play, the Bucs were looking to bounce back.
The first two games of the series were held under clear skies and cold weather on April 2. Just like the temperature, both teams struggled to warm up on offense, as the first game only saw a combined eight hits. The only run scored was in favor of the Mocs in the sixth inning, as the Bucs dropped the first game of the series by a score of 1-0.
The Bucs left six runners on base in the final three innings of game one play.
Game two was almost identical to game one. The weather warmed up, but the Bucs offense struggled to get going. With only eight hits combined, split four and four, the Mocs would score three runs and shutout the Bucs again in back-to-back games. The Bucs dropped to 1-4 in conference play to end the day.
The Bucs had not been shutout in back-to-back games since 2019 vs University of South Carolina Upstate.
Game three of the series saw more excitement than the previous day would, but it would take until the 10th inning to see the first runs of the game for either side. Entering the 10th inning, both teams had struggled the entire game to get a runner home. That was until Chattanooga put two runs on the board in extra innings to put the Bucs in a must-score situation in the bottom of the inning.
The Bucs, already having one out and in need of a booster, sent Lilly Holston (Powell, Tennessee) up to bat. She delivered a two-run homer to even out the score 2-2 and keep the Bucs alive for one more inning.
Entering the 11th, the Mocs scored quick, putting the Bucs down 3-2 as they entered the bottom of the inning. A groundout, a foul-out and a strikeout would end the three-hour game, making it the longest game in Betty Basler Field history and hand the Mocs a 3-0 sweep on the weekend.
After losing 3-2, the Bucs fall to a (13-11) record and are now (1-5) in Southern Conference play.
The Bucs look to move on this weekend as they travel to face the (13-16) Western Carolina Catamounts in a three-game series taking place on April 10-11.
