Bucs drop two on Saturday in Starkville; Sunday’s game with Mississippi State canceled

STARKVILLE, Miss. (March 11, 2023) – The ETSU softball team dropped a pair of games on its final day of the Bulldog Invitational on Saturday, as the Bucs fell to Omaha and Southeastern Louisiana.

Omaha, who defeated the Bucs in game one 6-0, improved to 13-5 on the year, while ETSU slipped to 4-16, following a 7-2 loss to Southeastern Louisiana at Nusz Park in Starkville, Miss.

Although the Bucs were scheduled to play Mississippi State on Sunday afternoon, the contest has been canceled because of the forecasted weather in the area.

RECORDS

ETSU (4-16)

Omaha (13-5)

Southeastern Louisiana (20-5)

NOTABLES

• Against Omaha, the Bucs left seven runners on base, going 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
• Whitley Arnott (China Grove, N.C.) recorded a season-high five strikeouts in game one of the doubleheader.
• In game two, Riley Nayadley (Ooltewah, Tenn.) extended her hit streak to five games and was one of two Bucs to record a hit, finishing 2-for-3 with a run scored.

OMAHA RECAP

Displaying signs of early offense, as the Blue and Gold had multiple base runners reach in the first three innings – including having the bases loaded in the second – ETSU was unable to get the timely hit.

In a scoreless game heading into the bottom of the third, Omaha scored its first run of the contest as they had the bases loaded with one out and the Mavericks plated an unearned run on an RBI ground out to first, making it 1-0.

With Omaha keeping the Bucs off the board, the Mavericks scratched across two runs in the fifth and tacked on three more in the sixth to secure the 6-0 win.

SLU RECAP

Southeastern Louisiana used a five-run first inning to gain all the momentum as the Lions defeated the Bucs, 7-2.

The Lions used the long ball to do most of their damage in the bottom of the first as three Southeastern Louisiana hitters went yard, giving them a 5-0 advantage after one inning of play.

The Blue and Gold retuned a punch in the top of the second by plating a pair of runs, cutting the deficit to, 5-2. Two Bucs score on a throwing error at first base as Nayadley and Faith Adams (Henrico, Va.) both came on a ball put in play by Kendall Pitts (Knoxville, Tenn.).

However, the Lions got the two runs back in the bottom half of the second, resulting in the 7-2 score.

Both teams were kept off the scoreboard for the final five innings as Kendall Thackston (Greenville, S.C.) kept the Lions scoreless from the third through fifth innings and Brianna Bailey (Wewahitchka, Fla.) tossed the final inning of no-hit ball.

PITCHERS OF RECORD

ETSU: Whitley Arnott (0-2) – loss. | Game two: Taylor Suchy (0-2) – loss.

Omaha: Kamryn Meyer (5-3) – win.

SE Louisiana: A Romano (1-0) – win.

UP NEXT

With the final game against Mississippi State being canceled on Sunday, the Bucs will be back in action on Tuesday as they host Morehead State for a doubleheader starting at 2 p.m. at Betty Basler Field. 

For more information on Buccaneer softball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the softball tab.