OFFENSIVE OUTBURST LIFTS SKYHAWK SOFTBALL TO HOME SWEEP OF MOREHEAD STATE

Sunday, March 31

Martin, Tenn.

1 p.m.

UT Martin

22-14, 4-3

Morehead State

2-22, 0-5

Morehead State

UT Martin

OFFENSIVE OUTBURST LIFTS SKYHAWK SOFTBALL TO HOME SWEEP OF MOREHEAD STATE

3/31/2019 5:24:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Game 36: PDF Game 37: PDF Photo Gallery

MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin softball team scored early and often en route to a dominating series sweep of Ohio Valley Conference foe Morehead State on Sunday afternoon, picking up five inning victory by score of 10-1 and 11-2.

The Skyhawks (23-14, 5-3 OVC) posted a truly remarkable .512 batting average in the doubleheader while scoring 21 runs on the day. A total of seven different players tallied multi-hit performances on the day while 10 Skyhawks recorded back knocks.

Highlighting the day was the play of junior Aalia Bivens who was nearly unstoppable. Bivens went 4-for-5 on the afternoon with a double, two home runs and six RBIs while completing her day with a stolen base for good measure. Meanwhile, the outfield duo of Paige Clark and Haylee Short both tallied three base hits along with three combined RBIs and stolen bases.

In the circle, Hannah Ridolfi (6-5) picked up her 22^nd career victory by allowing just one earned run over five innings of work. Freshman Erin Gallagher (6-1) posted a victory in Game 2 after striking out five and allowing two earned runs in five innings.

"We had a rough night on Friday, so we needed two wins today," UT Martin head coach Donley Canary said. "We had some team building yesterday by having lunch together, had the chance to talk and we were able to socialize to hopefully relax everyone today. I think it helped loosen them up and we came out and really hit the ball well. This is a talented team that is coming into form."

Game 36: UT Martin10, Morehead State 1 (5 innings)
UT Martin wasted very little time jumping out to an early lead. A leadoff single by Clark jumpstarted the inning before swiping second to move into scoring position. From there Kenna Garst singled down the left field line to score Clark and give the Skyhawks an early lead. Not to be outdone by her freshman teammate, Georgia Land stroked her first home run of her career to deep left center for a pair of RBIs. The Skyhawks would tack on two more runs in the inning on a sacrifice fly and a wild pitch to take a 5-0 advantage after one inning.

The Skyhawks stayed aggressive in the second inning with another offensive push. With the bases loaded and one out, Gracyn McBride drew a seven-pitch walk to score a run. After that a fielder's choice and double steal plated a pair before capping off the inning with a single up the middle by short to make it a 9-0 advantage.

Morehead State (2-23, 0-6 OVC) finally got on the board in the top of the third when Cheyenne Meyer turned on a 1-0 pitch and drove it clear over the left field scoreboard to break the shutout.

UT Martin would ultimately add on another run in the bottom of the third to cap off the game's scoring on a RBI groundout by Clark.

Game 37: UT Martin 11, Morehead State 2 (5 innings)
Much like in Game 1 of the day, UT Martin jumped out to a sizable lead in the first inning. A leadoff single by Clark combined with a stolen base put the Skyhawks in scoring position. From there Land would tally her third RBI of the day with a single up the middle. After a second runner was placed on base following a hit-by-pitch, Bivens turned on her first home run of the day to blast a three-run homer just inside the left field foul pole. The Skyhawks would add their fifth run of the frame with a RBI single by Kallie Pickens.

The Eagles looked to respond in the top of the second. A double by Cassie Griffin got the squad going before a two-run blast to center by Kalle Coleman cut the margin down to 5-2.

The Skyhawks responded however with five more runs in the bottom of the second. A pair of singles led off the inning before McBride tallied her second RBI of the day with an infield single. After the hit, Madelyn Dycus entered as a pinch run and immediately stole second before moving to third as Clark scored on a wild pitch. With a runner still 60 feet from home, Bivens turned on her second home run of the game and lined it off the left field scoreboard to make it a seven-run margin. UT Martin would not be done as the Alli Fulcher recorded a RBI single of her own to make it 10-2 after two.

With the needed runs for its second mercy rule of the game, UT Martin added one more run for insurance in the bottom of the fourth when pinch hitter Alexis Rogers dumped a single into center field to score Bivens and end the day's offensive onslaught.

UT Martin will cap off its five-game homestand with a matchup against Middle Tennessee on Wednesday, April 3. First pitch from Bettye Giles Field is scheduled for 4 p.m.