Scott Shelton
Staff Writer
The Troy softball team went on the road and mercy-ruled Appalachian State twice in a three-game series sweep last weekend before defeating the UAB Blazers on Tuesday.
Following the Appalachian State sweep, Troy catcher Kaylee Hussey was named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Week. Hussey had five hits against the Mountaineers, including two home runs and a game-tying RBI in game three.
After the third game versus Appalachian State, Troy Head Coach Beth Mullins commended the team’s effort after falling behind early to the Mountaineers.
“I am really proud of the fight we showed today in game three,” Mullins said. “We put ourselves in a hole early, but Peyton Glover came in and did a great job of shutting them down, and our offense just chipped away.
“All weekend we did a great job of having quality at-bats from one through nine in the order, and it showed on the scoreboard.”
In game one on Friday, Troy started the series with Stephanie Snyder hitting a three-run home run in the top of the first inning.
In the second inning, Logan Calhoun hit an RBI double to bring home Hussey, and Madeline Porter scored Taylor Corbett to make the score 5-0.
In the third inning, Hussey hit her fourth home run of the year and gave the Trojans an 8-0 lead.
The Mountaineers fought back with three runs in the third inning, but the Trojans pulled away in the fifth inning.
Calhoun hit her second RBI-double of the game, and Erica Davis and Porter both hit home runs to extend the lead to 10 runs.
Freshman pitcher Annie Willis ended the game with her sixth strikeout as the Trojans mercy-ruled the Mountaineers 13-3 after five innings.
In game two, the Trojans started hot once again, scoring three runs in the first inning. Porter and Brooke Echols hit RBI singles, and Hope Hernandez hit a sacrifice fly to bring home Snyder.
Troy exploded in the third inning with back-to-back home runs from Snyder and Echols. Porter hit a two-RBI to make the score 9-0.
The Mountaineers hit a couple of home runs in the third to cut into the Trojans’ lead.
In the fifth inning, the game was postponed to Saturday because of rain.
When play resumed, the Trojans kept the bats hot with an RBI-single from Katie Webb and Echols hitting the first grand slam of her career.
A sacrifice fly from Hussey scored Porter, and the Trojans scored their 15th and final run of the game. Glover struck out the last batter, and the Trojans mercy-ruled the Mountaineers for the second-straight game, winning 15-2.
The Trojans fell behind early in game three, giving up seven runs in the first inning alone.
Troy was held scoreless until the third inning when Webb hit her fifth home run of the year and put two runs on the board for the Trojans.
Snyder hit another home run as the Trojans cut into the Mountaineers’ lead.
The Mountaineers scored the game as the Trojans fought back.
In the sixth inning, the Trojans used an RBI-double from Snyder and an error by the Mountaineers to take a 9-8 lead after a five-run inning.
Appalachian State got two runners on base in the seventh inning, but the Trojan defense held strong and took the 9-8 win and the series.
On Tuesday against the UAB Blazers, Troy trailed after allowing a first-inning run. The Trojans then used five unanswered runs, including four in the third inning, to take the lead 5-1.
UAB threatened with a solo home run in the third inning, but Troy responded with an RBI single from Calhoun in the fourth inning.
The Blazers scored a run in the fifth and sixth innings, but the Trojan defense held strong, and Troy took the game 6-4.
The series sweep over the Mountaineers gives the Trojans a winning record of 8-7 in the Sun Belt Conference, and the win over UAB gives the Trojans an overall record of 24-17.
Next, the Trojans take on Coastal Carolina this weekend in a three-game series followed by a single game against South Alabama on Wednesday. All four games will be played at the Troy Softball Complex.
