Auguata, Ga.----The 13th-ranked Wingate University Bulldogs dropped a pair of games at GRU Augusta Tuesday afternoon in an NCAA Division II softball doubleheader. The Jaguars won the first game 4-1, while rallying for a 3-2 victory in game two to improve to 13-3 overall. Wingate falls to 10-8 on the season.
Game One: GRU Augusta 4, #13 Wingate 1Brianna Dickens was two-for-three with two RBI to lead the GRU Augusta offense in game one.
Brooke Stephens went two-for-two with a homer and two runs scored for the Jaguars.
Junior catcher
Taylor Laskey (Cherryville, N.C.) was two-for-two with a homer to lead the Wingate attack. Junior infielder
Mellena Helms (Concord, N.C.) went one-for-three for the Bulldogs.
Wingate jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the fourth when Laskey led off the frame with her third homer of the year, a solo shot to left to put the 'Dogs on top.
The Jaguars answered with two runs in the fourth. GRU Augusta tied the game when Stephens started the inning with a solo homer center field. A single, sacrifice and error gave the Jaguars a 2-1 lead. Dickens added a two-run double in the sixth to make it 4-1.
Paige Deschaine got the win, moving to 7-1. She allowed a run on three hits in seven innings of work, striking out eight and walking two. Junior right-hander
Stacey Houser (Mooresville, N.C.) took the loss, falling to 6-6. She allowed three earned runs in six innings of work, striking out two and walking three.
Game Two: GRU Augusta 3, #13 Wingate 2Hannah Vaughn was one-for-three with a triple and three RBI to lead the Jaguar offense in game two. Stephens added two hits and a run scored, while
Molly Walton went one-for-three with a run scored.
Laskey went one-for-two with a homer in game two, while Helms also homered for the Bulldogs. Junior infielder
Emily Usiak (Matthews, N.C.) was two-for-four in the second game for Wingate.
Laskey gave Wingate a 1-0 lead in the third with a solo homer in the third. The 'Dogs loaded the bases in the second and third innings, but could not add on to their lead.
Helms connected on her third homer of the year in the fourth, a solo shot to right to give Wingate a 2-0 lead.
The Jaguars answered with a three-run fifth. Two singles and a hit batsman loaded the bases with one out, while a three-run triple from Vaughn put GRU Augusta on top 3-2.
Haley Birkle got the win to improve to 6-2 on the season. She allowed two runs on seven hits in seven innings, striking out three and walking five. Senior right-hander
Miranda Paul (Virginia Beach, Va.) took the loss, falling to 1-1. She allowed three runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings.
Wingate is back in action Saturday, traveling to Tusculum to open conference play at 1 p.m.
