DeLand, Fla. - A day after being knocked from the unbeaten ranks, the Stetson softball team (8-2) bounced back nicely with two wins in its Hatter Classic, defeating St. Bonaventure (4-4) 3-2 and Mount St. Mary's (1-3) 2-0. Freshman pitcher Courtney Brandt (Dade City, Fla.) racked up a career-high 11 strikeouts in a four-hit shutout in the nightcap.
STETSON 3, ST. BONAVENTURE 2
The Hatters rallied in the bottom of the first after St. Bonaventure scored two unearned runs in the top of the inning. Stetson loaded the bases with one out and eventually got a clutch two-out, two-run single up the middle from senior left fielder Brittany Knipp (Land O'Lakes, Fla.) to tie the game 2-2.
No offense was to be produced thereafter until the seventh inning as Stetson sophomore Meredith Owen (Jackson, Miss.) and SBU's Diana Phalon engaged in an excellent pitching duel. Owen would end up getting her third win of the season, allowing just the two unearned runs on two hits and two walks; she tied her career-high strikeout total with nine and reduced her season ERA to 0.97.
The Bonnies put runners on first and second with two out in the top of the seventh, but Stetson junior second baseman Jordan Cleghorn (Ball Ground, Ga.) ended the threat with a diving stab of pinch hitter Lauren Waite's line drive. In the bottom of the last frame, the Hatters plated the winning run without a base hit. They loaded the bases on two walks, an error and a passed ball before an odd sequence to end the game. Brandt hit a tapper to shortstop who threw home in plenty of time to beat senior pinch runner Grace Turner (Fort Myers, Fla.), but the SBU catcher failed to touch home plate while receiving the throw as Turner scored the winning run.
Phalon struck out three in the loss for the Bonnies; shortstop Ashley Snider led the St. Bonaventure offense with two hits and a stolen base. Knipp had two base hits for the Hatters.
STETSON 2, MOUNT ST. MARY'S 0
Brandt and Mountaineers pitcher Nicole Pagano threw shutouts at each other for five full innings, but it would be the Hatters that finally broke through in the top of the sixth. Brandt aided her own cause with a leadoff double down the left field line; one batter later, freshman third baseman Demi Meza (Oxnard, Calif.) drove her in with an RBI single back up the middle.
Cleghorn tacked on an insurance run for Stetson with an RBI double in the seventh that brought in junior right fielder Chelsea Whalley (Calgary, Alta.); both players finished with a single and a double on the evening. The Mount brought the winning run to the plate with two out in the bottom of the seventh but Brandt induced a pop-up to Meza to end the ballgame.
Brandt blanked the Mountaineers on four hits and four walks with a season-best 11 strikeouts to go along with her double at the plate. Pagano, who tossed a one-hit shutout against the Hatters on Friday afternoon, allowed two runs on six hits and two walks in seven innings. She struck out six.
In other Saturday action at the Hatter Classic, St. Bonaventure shut out Bethune-Cookman by a 3-0 score for the second straight day and B-CU used a five-run seventh inning rally to stun Mount St. Mary's 7-6.
The Hatter Classic wraps up Sunday as SBU faces B-CU at 10:00 am and the Hatters take on Mount St. Mary's for the third time this weekend at 12:00 pm. Live Stats for both contests and Hatter Vision for the Stetson-Mount game will be available at GoHatters.com.
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