AMERICUS, Ga. -- Hayley Tierce crushed three home runs and Ansley Dean hit the first two of her career to help the Georgia Southwestern State University softball team to a doubleheader split with Albany State Tuesday at Lady Canes Field.
The Lady Rams scored four runs in the seventh inning of game one to take a 5-1 victory before GSW took the night cap with a five inning 11-0 run-rule win. The Lady Canes sit at 11-16 overall on the season and Albany State goes to 11-14 with the split.
How It Happened:
Game 1: Georgia Southwestern 1 Albany State 5
The Lady Canes struggled to string hits together off Albany State starter Lauren Lowrey for the second time this season after managing just two total hits when the teams met back in February. ASU took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI single off Shannon Gibson before Tierce hit her eighth homer of the season deep over the fence in center to make it a 1-1 game after two full.
Gibson and Lowrey kept the opposing offenses off the board for the next four innings before the GSW defense imploded in the seventh. The Lady Canes committed three errors and allowed three hits in the frame that caused four ASU runs to cross the plate. Three of the runs were unearned off reliever Madason Messer after she came on to replace Gibson following a single and a wild pitch.
Lauren Kuerzi drew a two-out walk in the bottom half, but that was all GSW could manage as Lowrey threw a complete game and allowed just five hits with the one run.
Game 2: Georgia Southwestern 11 Albany State 0
The GSW bats came alive early and often in game two against starter Aryn McGowan. Hitting in the leadoff spot for the first time in her career, Dean started the game with a homer deep to left field that ignited the Lady Canes lineup. Mikela Barlow drew a walk and Tierce followed with another moon shot, this time deep past the scoreboard in left that made it 3-0. GSW took a four-run lead after the first when Elizabeth Wills doubled and came around to score after Gibson reached on an error.
Dean wasn't done as she went back-to-back, drilling another solo shot to left center her next time up in the second that made it 5-0. Taylor Clemens replaced McGowan in the circle when Barlow drew a one-out walk and forced Tierce to hit a grounder to third, but an error at second base allowed Barlow to move up and Tierce to reach. Kuerzi followed with a double to left scoring Barlow and Tierce crossed the plate when Wills hit a sacrifice fly to center making the score 7-0.
After a scoreless third the Lady Canes put another crooked number on the board in the fourth. Tierce started the inning with her team-high 10th homer of the season that improved her RBI total to 31. Chloe Zoeller hit a two-run single to center before Dean came through with her fourth RBI of the game on a single to left to make it an 11-0 Lady Canes lead after four innings.
GSW starter Brittany Childs allowed just three hits and struck out three batters in five innings to record her third win of the season in the circle.
Up Next: The Lady Canes travel to Carrollton for a nonconference doubleheader with West Georgia Wednesday. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. from University Field.