Hanna Cooper
Staff Writer
The Troy softball team traveled to Orlando, Florida to take part in the Diamond 9 Classic. In Orlando, Troy squared off against Stetson, Missouri, UMass, LIU Brooklyn and Saint Joseph’s.
On opening day of the tournament, Troy downed Stetson, 14-0, before falling to Missouri, 6-0, in the second game of the day.
Annie Willis threw a one-hitter to lead Troy past Stetson. Bailey Taylor led the offensive effort for the Trojans, recording two hits and five RBIs with a grand slam. Katie Webb also added two hits and three RBIs for Troy. In the loss to Missouri, Logan Calhoun and Taila Truitt both recorded singles for Troy’s only hits on the game.
The Trojans ended day two of the Diamond 9 Classic Saturday afternoon with a pair of wins. Troy recorded 19 total hits to lead them over UMass, 5-1, and LIU Brooklyn, 9-1.
Truitt went 5-for-7, scoring three runs while freshman Katie Lively went 2-for-3 with four RBIs to lead Troy over LIU Brooklyn. Leanna Johnson and Annie Willis scattered seven hits and two runs to lead Troy in the circle.
“I thought we played two very complete games today,” Head Coach Beth Mullins said. “We pitched well, played great defense and hit the ball well. We’ve got to go back to (the) hotel, get some good rest and finish strong tomorrow morning.”
Troy did, in fact, finish strong Sunday morning defeating Saint Joseph’s, 7-4, in the extra innings.
Taylor again spearheaded the offensive effort for Troy, going 3-for-5 with six RBIs and a homerun. Leanna Johnson (4-1) faced 29 of the 32 batters who stepped into the box and recorded six strikeouts.
In the bottom of the eighth, Truitt doubled down the third base line. Madeline Porter advanced Truitt to third with a single to left. Katie Webb was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Taylor doubled to left center to clear the bases and gave Troy a three-run advantage.
Saint Joseph’s was unable to answer in the bottom of the eighth after Troy’s big offensive inning gave Troy its seventh win of the season.
Troy’s win over Saint Joseph’s gives the Hawks its first loss of the season.
Troy heads to Tallahassee, Florida on Wednesday to take on Florida A&M. The first game is set to start at 4 p.m.
