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Orange Beach, AL-After a tough 10-0 loss at the hands of Mobile on Friday night in the opening game of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament, the Belhaven softball team battled back with a pair of wins on Saturday earning them a spot in the championship game where their run came to an end with a 12-2 setback to William Carey.  

 

The Lady Blazers opened the day with a 4-0 win over Spring Hill College and avenged their earlier defeat to Mobile with a 4-2 victory over the Lady Rams. Belhaven finishes the year with a record of 36-19 which sets a new Belhaven record for most wins in a season.

 

In game one against Spring Hill Belhaven jumped ahead with three runs in the bottom of the third inning. With one out in the inning, Britanee Pace singled to center and Kayla Maldonado followed with a base hit to left to put runners at first and second. Pace was then thrown out at third base on a fielder's choice off the bat of Britney Webb for the second out of the inning.

 

The Lady Blazers loaded the bases as Jessica Eggold dropped a single into right field which set up a two run single down the right field line by Heather Pace plating Webb and Pace for the first two runs of the game. Mallory Meadows capped the inning off with a base hit to right which chased home Eggold and put Belhaven on top 3-0.

 

Belhaven added their fourth run in the fourth inning with the aid of one hit and an error. Salina Cervantes singled to center to begin the frame and was pinch run for by Clarissa Williams. Williams then stole second base and following a strikeout by Chelsea Randle, moved to third base via a misplayed ground ball to the shortstop Monica Zeringue off the bat of Britanee Pace. Maldonado then sent her home on an RBI groundout to second base to make it a 4-0 Lady Blazer lead.

 

Belhaven pitcher Ashley Mottola would make the lead stand up the rest of the way and preserve the complete game shutout victory. Mottola pitched all seven innings and allowed only six hits as she finishes the year with a 13-7 record. Samantha Brooks took the loss for Spring Hill and was charged with four runs on seven hits.

 

Heather Pace led the offense with 2 RBI's while Meadows and Maldonado had a hit and an RBI apiece. Jessica Whidden and Lauren Crane each had two hits for the Lady Badgers.

 

Belhaven continued their solid play against the University of Mobile who had just lost a heartbreaking game to William Carey prior to playing the Lady Blazers. The Lady Rams held a 6-4 advantage over the Lady Crusaders only to see William Carey mount a late comeback to take a 7-6 come from behind win.

 

Mobile scratched together a run in the top of the second to build an early 1-0 lead, but it could have been more. The Lady Rams had a walk and two singles to start the inning and plated their first run of the game on an RBI base hit by Kirstyn Joiner. With one out in the inning Mobile loaded the bases, but Mallory Meadows worked out of trouble by getting a fielder's choice to cut down a run at the plate and a ground out back to the mound by Desiree Truett to end the inning.

 

Belhaven's offense picked it up in the bottom of the third and scored all four of their runs in the inning. Webb reached on a walk, went to second on a base hit by Eggold and crossed home plate on Heather Pace's single to center. The big hit in the inning was by Meadows who blasted her 18^th home run of the year to straight away center field giving her 78 RBI's on the season and putting the Lady Blazers up 4-1.

 

The Lady Rams put a run on the board in the sixth with an Ackerman double and RBI single by Joiner, but it was too little to late as Belhaven held on the rest of the way for the 4-2 win. Meadows who paced the offense with 3 RBI's, also earned the pitching victory for the Lady Blazers by firing all seven innings and holding the Lady Rams to two runs on eight hits. Nicole Sweat was charged with all four runs in two innings and took the loss for Mobile.

 

Heather Pace had the other run batted in to go along with two hits on the afternoon. Cervantes also came up with a pair of singles for Belhaven. Joiner had two hits and both RBI's for the Lady Rams.

 

Belhaven's tournament run came to end against William Carey in a 12-2 run rule loss at the hands of the Lady Crusaders in the GCAC championship game. William Carey blew the game open early with five runs in the bottom first and never looked back. They added a single tally in the third and six more runs in the fourth to build a 12-0 lead.

 

Belhaven got a couple of late runs in the fifth on RBI base hits by Eggold and Heather Pace, but it wasn't enough to prevent the run rule. Judy Barber had three hits and 4 RBI's for the Lady Crusaders while Jeana Erickson and Larke Nightengale each added two hits and 3 RBI's.

 

Cervantes was charged with the loss allowing five runs on four hits in one inning of work. Katie McCrary got the win for the Lady Crusaders pitching four innings with two runs allowed.