VALDOSTA, Ga., – The University of North Alabama softball team's nine-game winning streak came to a crashing halt Saturday afternoon at the hands of No. 2 Valdosta State. The Blazers got a dominant pitching performance in the opener before rallying for a win in the second game to come away with the 5-0, 6-1 sweep.
The two losses leave the Lions with a 16-3 overall record and 5-2 mark in Gulf South Conference play. Valdosta State improves to 20-2 overall and 9-1 in GSC action. The two teams will wrap up the three-game GSC series with a single game Sunday afternoon at noon (CST).
In the opener, VSU's Caitlyn Calhoun allowed just two hits in the complete-game shutout. Singles by Libby Olinger in the top of the first inning and Carey Grace Peebles in the seventh represented two UNA's four base runners in the game. The Lions also reached on an error and had a hit batter, but could never advance past second base.
Calhoun added five strikeouts to improve to 11-1 on the season. Bree Blevins (7-2) took the loss for UNA. The senior scattered four hits and struck out four batters. The Blazers, however, made the most of their at-bats.
Three of Valdosta State's four hits came in the first inning as the Blazers plated three runs to take the early lead. VSU got its other hit in the third inning on an RBI-single and also scored on an error to account for the final score.
In the second game, UNA took a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the fourth inning before allowing three unearned runs. VSU took advantage of a trio of errors in the fourth to grab a 3-1 lead. In the fifth, another Lion error and a two-run single by Kiley Rusen made the score 6-1.
For the game, UNA held a 6-5 advantage in hits, but left seven runners stranded. Hillary Carpenter suffered her first loss of the season, falling to 8-1 after allowing six runs off five hits with five strikeouts. Only two of the VSU runs were earned.
At the plate, Reagan Tittle was 2-for-2 for the game. Oligner was 2-for-3 and drove in the team's lone run in the top of the first inning.
