GRAMBLING, La.| Two come-from-behind walk-off victories secured Grambling State's spot in the 2022 SWAC Tournament on Wednesday afternoon at the GSU Softball Complex. The Lady Tigers swept Alcorn State in the series to secure the final spot in the tournament that begins next week.
GAME 2
HOW IT HAPPENED
-Grambling State (23-23, 10-13 SWAC) came out swinging in the bottom of the inning as Antiya Randle doubled to right field for a two-run RBI a scoring Kaytlyn Moore and Ta'Mya Moore
-Deija Russell came to the plate and singled to shortstop as India Wells scored to round out the first inning 3-0
-Alcorn State (16-32, 9-11 SWAC) answered in the top of the third inning scoring two runs as Desirea Lindsey singled to center field scoring Chloe Morgan and Miracle Crosby with the Braves trailing 3-2
-Alcorn State tied the game at three in the fourth with a double from Genise Wells that scored Kennedy Terry
-The Brave continued to hit the gas scoring two more runs in the top of the fifth as Grambling State trailed 5-3
-In the top of the seventh, Alcorn State's Tyesha Cole and Marsha Hunt hit back-to-back home runs over the left field fence to give the Braves a 7-3 lead
-Grambling State answered with a vengeance in the bottom of the seventh as Kaytlyn Moore singled to center field scoring Dazzlyn Woodard
-Antiya Randle walked with the bases loaded allowing Jayda Williams to come home scoring the Lady Tigers' fifth run
-Nyah Jones recorded the second out with a sacrifice fly to left field that brought the tying run across the plate. GSU closed out the seventh inning with the score tied at seven
-The Lady Tigers played perfect defense going three up, three down in the top of the eighth inning
-A walk-off walk with two outs sealed the Lady Tigers' 8-7 victory keeping their tournament hopes alive
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
-Grambling State finished with 11 hits and eight runs
-Alcorn State finished with 11 hits and seven runs
-Sherrell Matthews took the victory in the circle for GSU pitching all eight innings and recording four strikeouts
-Kiri Parker pitched seven innings for the Braves and allowed seven runs, nine hits, seven errors and four walks
GAME 3
HOW IT HAPPENED
-Alcorn State (16-33, 9-12 SWAC) got on the board first as Chloe Morgan made her way around the diamond and scored on a wild pitch
-The game remained 1-0 until the top of the fifth when Alcorn State's Morgan laid down a sacrifice bunt to score Genise Wells with two away
-Grambling State (24-22, 11-13 SWAC) scored for the first time in the bottom of the fifth inning as Anaiyah Fultz hit a sacrifice fly allowing Nyah Jones to score
-The Braves scored two more runs in the sixth to take a 4-1 lead over GSU
-With the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning, Grambling State rallied on two outs as Kaytlyn Moore smacked an RBI single to left field scoring Anaiyah Fultz
-India Wells came up to the plate next and crushed a double to center field scoring two more runs and tying the score at four
-With runners on second and third and Antiya Randle coming to the plate, Alcorn State made a pitching change
-The Lady Tigers walked off again as Kaytlyn Moore scored on a wild pitch as GSU sealed the 5-4 victory advancing to the SWAC Tournament
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
-Grambling State finished with four hits and five runs
-Alcorn State finished with seven hits and four runs
-Dacia Richard secured the victory in the circle for GSU pitching seven innings and striking out four batters
-Brenn Ursin pitched 6.2 innings and allowed four hits, five runs and walking batters
UP NEXT
The Lady Tigers will travel to Gulfport, Mississippi to compete in the 2022 SWAC Softball Tournament facing off against Alabama State in the opening round. First pitch is set for 9 a.m. on Tuesday at the Gulfport Sportsplex.
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