AMERICUS, Ga. – It was a mixed bag for the Georgia Southwestern Lady Hurricanes who ended their 2012 Season with a split decision against the UNC Pembroke Braves (16-31, 5-15 PBC) on Sunday's Senior Day. The six GSW seniors and company won game one 4-0 before dropping the second game 2-3.
GAME ONE: Georgia Southwestern-4 UNC Pembroke-0
It seem only fitting victory for the Lady Hurricanes in the first game that seniors Jessica Martin and Casey Burns would win the game in the circle. Martin would open the game with five scoreless innings where she surrendered four hits and two walks while striking out three UNCP batters. She would be replaced by fellow senior Casey Burns who would combine with Martin for the shutout. Burns, the Hopehull, Ala. Native, would toss the final two innings of shutout ball while only surrendering one base runner via a hit.
Georgia Southwestern would not have to wait long to get their first run of the game. It would come in the bottom of the first inning as UNCP second baseman Kaytee Wilson would commit an error on a Gabby Buck groundball. The mistake would allow Mason Moreland to score from second base and put the Lady Hurricanes on the board.
GSW would build on their lead by one run in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Jessica Chewning would drive home fellow senior Katie Wooten on a single to the third base side in the fourth for the RBI. The fifth's scoring action would come on a passed ball by Pembroke catcher Brea Hartley, which let Mason Moreland score her second run of the game for the Lady Hurricanes. Moreland, the Georgia Southwestern second baseman, would be part of the scoring equation again for the final GSW run of the game. The sophomore would drive in Ashley Cavender on a single to left field.
Jessica Martin would earn the win in her final start of her collegiate career. It would be her tenth victory of the season and her 28 win of her GSW career.
GAME TWO: Georgia Southwestern-2 UNC Pembroke-3
It would be seniors in the circle and at the plate that would lead the charge for Coach Ward and company. Katie Maddox on the mound and Gabby Buck at the plate would keep Georgia Southwestern in the game.
Both teams would score in the first inning. The Braves would score courtesy of a Holly Berry RBI single to centerfield that scored Brea Hartley with only one out. It would be the only run Katie Maddox would give up until the fifth inning.
GSW would even it out in their half of the first inning after Mason Moreland opened the inning with a walk, which she followed up by stealing second base in the next at-bat. It would be a theme for the Lady Hurricanes as Moreland would steal three bases in game two and five bases for the day. Her steal of second in the first inning of game two would break the program's all-time stolen base record in the NCAA Division II era. Moreland would be driven home in the inning by Gabby Buck. It would be one of two RBI's for the senior third baseman.
UNC Pembroke would take the lead in the fifth inning. Brea Hartley would score Karlee Wilson with a sacrifice fly to Katie Wooten in right field.
Georgia Southwestern would tie the game at two runs apiece in the bottom of the sixth inning as Gabby Buck would once again drive in Mason Moreland. It would be her 86th RBI of her collegiate career, which is first all-time in the NCAA Division II era at Georgia Southwestern.
The tie game would be broken up by UNC Pembroke in their half of the seventh inning. Just as she had done in the first inning, Holly Berry would drive in a run for the Braves to give them the 3-2 lead. The one-run lead would hold up as GSW would go down 1-2-3 in the 7th inning.
The split decision on Sunday would give Georgia Southwestern a final overall record of 22-30 (4-16 PBC) for the 2012 season. The 22 overall wins matches the win total from the 2011 season, which is a tie for most wins in a season in the NCAA Division II era. The pair of games also marked the final games of the careers of Georgia Southwestern's six seniors; Katie Maddox, Katie Wooten, Jessica Martin, Jessica Chewning, Casey Burns and Gabby Buck.