Golden Bears hand Spring Hill historic loss
Box Score
MOBILE, Ala. -- Spring Hill has spent the last three seasons playing in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and before Friday, had never suffered a loss in conference play.
But with two big swings of the bat, a strong performance from the pitching circle, and a great defensive play for the final out, Miles was able to hand the Badgers their first defeat. The Lady Golden Bears scored three times in the sixth inning, then held on for the final six outs to earn a 3-2 win over Spring Hill at Murray Field, breaking the team's 55-game SIAC win streak.
The win seemingly came out of nowhere. Miles (5-22, 4-2 SIAC) did not have a hit against Spring Hill's Danielle Clark (17-8) with two outs in the sixth. But
Victoria McDaniel, after fouling off three pitches, got an infield single to shortstop to start the rally. She would steal second, then on a 1-1 pitch,
Kendruena McPherson singled to right to score McDaniel and give the Lady Bears a 1-0 lead.
Kathryne Lambert quickly got into a 0-2 hole but three pitches later, she smoked her team-high sixth home run to left to give Miles a 3-0 lead.
Miles pitcher
Grayson Culverson (2-2) had been just as dominant through 5 1/3 innings, allowing just one hit to the Badgers. But give a three-run lead, she had to battle through the sixth. Kali Clement drove in a run with a single and scored on a throwing error to cut the SHC deficit to one. But with the tying run on second, Culverson induced a fly out to quell the threat.
In the bottom of the seventh, Culverson got two quick fly outs. Facing pinch hitter Sarah Johnson, she got weak contact to pop a ball into shallow left field. But what could have been a hit to extend the game turned into a tumbling catch by shortstop
Zakierra Webb to secure the win and end Miles' four-game losing streak. Culverson allowed just four hits and one earned run while striking out three to earn the win for the Lady Bears.
The two teams will complete their three-game series on Saturday when they play a doubleheader. The first pitch is scheduled for noon.
