May 8, 2008

Box Score

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. - The Samford University softball team advanced to the semifinal round of the Ohio Valley Conference for the first time in school history Thursday as the Bulldogs rallied for victories against Eastern Kentucky 8-6 and Morehead State 3-0.

With the pair of wins, Samford (25-27) extended its winning streak to six-straight games and earned two victories in the OVC Tournament for the first time in school history.

By advancing to the semifinals, the Bulldogs moved on to play the winner of Thursday night's late matchup between top-seeded Jacksonville State and fifth-seeded Tennessee Tech. Samford will begin play in its semifinal round game at 3 p.m., Friday at Jacksonville State's University Field.

"I'm so proud of our team and how they played their hearts out today," said Samford head coach Beanie Ketcham. "I felt that we really hit the ball well and Amanda Barrs did a great job of pitching in the second game. She really handcuffed Morehead State and I think that was her best performance of the season."

Samford's Amanda Barrs (8-7) hurled a complete-game two-hitter against Morehead State (33-15) and finished with a season-high seven strikeouts. The Bulldogs' sophomore pitcher also belted a two-run homer in the top of the first inning to give her squad an early 2-0 lead.

In both of Samford's victories Thursday, Barrs combined to go 5-for-7 with a home run and three RBI. She also scored two runs and tallied a slugging percentage of 1.143.

The Bulldogs jumped out to their 2-0 lead against Morehead State in the first inning and then tacked on another run in the second frame to increase their advantage to 3-0. The scored remained at 3-0 until the top of the fourth inning when it started raining in the area and both teams were forced to sit out a 3-hour and 35-minute rain delay.

"I was really disappointed when the rain came because I thought it was going to stop our momentum," Ketcham said. "It wasn't easy to come back from it offensively, but I actually thought that it helped Barrs to be stronger. She always seems to get better as the day goes on and today was a perfect example."

In Samford's first game of the day, the Bulldogs rallied to score five runs in the final two innings of play to earn an exciting 8-6 victory against the third-seeded Eastern Kentucky Colonels.

In the 8-6 win, Samford's Barrs went 3-for-4, scored a run and also drove in a run. The Bulldogs pounded out 13 hits in the game and tied a season-high in the category. Samford's Jessica Owens turned in a 2-for-5 performance at the plate, while Katie England went 2-for-4 and Amanda Jordan was 2-for-3.

Eastern Kentucky (28-21) held a 6-3 lead heading into the top of the sixth inning.

With Samford batting in the sixth frame, the Bulldogs rallied to score four runs on two hits to take a 7-6 advantage. Samford's winning run was scored by senior Jeslyn Metcalf on a wild pitch.

In the top of the seventh inning, the Bulldogs extended their lead to 8-6 as junior Kristy Lawrence blasted a deep solo home run to left center field. The home run was Lawrence's third of the 2008 campaign.

Samford's Kayla Burris (8-7) only pitched to two batters in the game, but was the pitcher of record when the Bulldogs exploded for their four-run rally. Barrs, who started the game in the circle, re-entered after Samford took its lead and picked up her first save of the season.

Eastern Kentucky's Kalyn Fox (8-6) was handed the loss. She allowed four earned runs and gave up 13 hits.

The Samford University softball team will next be in action Friday at 3 p.m., as the Bulldogs square off against the winner on Thursday's game four between Jacksonville State and Tennessee Tech.

GameTracker - Samford vs. Jacksonville State
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