JACKSON, Miss. - The Belhaven University Softball team faced off against the Jackson State University Lady Tigers in a road doubleheader on Tuesday, March 9. The Blazers swept the Lady Tigers taking game one, 9-0, in five innings, while the Blazers held off a late rally by the Lady Tigers in game two, winning it 6-4.

GAME ONE

The Blazers scored in four of the five innings of game one as the first inning was the biggest in terms of score as the team plated five runs to gain an early lead. Marlee Blackwell hit a lead-off double for the Blazers and then scored on a single by Elizabeth Taggard. Allie Gordon then reached on a fielder's choice as Taggard was forced out at second, while Kennedy Carruth drew a walk, and Cade Bass singled to load the bases for the Blazers. Gordon and Carruth then scored on a single by Anna McNeer, while Bass scored on a single by Alayna Adams and McNeer scored on an error during the play giving the Blazers a 5-0 lead. A solo run in the second inning increased the Blazers lead to 6-0 as Elizabeth Taggard hit her second single of the game and then scored on a double by Allie Gordon.

The Blazers added two runs in the fourth as Marlee Blackwell collected her second hit of the game with a single and then scored on a double by Elizabeth Taggard, while Taggard later scored on a single by Kennedy Carruth increasing the Blazers lead to 8-0. The final run for the Blazers came in the fifth as Kailey Chachere was called on to pinch hit and reached on an error and later scored on a double by Marlee Blackwell giving the Blazers a 9-0 lead, while a three-up-and-three-down bottom of the fifth for the Lady Tigers sealed the win for the Blazers.

Kennedy Carruth got the start in the circle and earned her fifth win of the season, 5-1, in her sixth complete game effort of the season. Carruth allowed just one hit in the five inning shutout and had eight strikeouts with two walks and two hit batters. Elizabeth Taggard and Marlee Blackwell paced the Blazers offense with three hits each, while Blackwell had one RBI and Taggard collected two RBIs. Allie Gordon added two hits in the game, with Kennedy Carruth, Cade Bass, Anna McNeer, and Alayna Adams having one hit each. Gordon, Carruth, and Adams also had one RBI apiece, while McNeer had two RBIs.

GAME TWO

The second game saw neither team score until the third inning as the Blazers broke the scoreless tie with one run in the top half of the inning as Macy Brabham got the Blazers going by drawing a walk and then later scored as Allie Gordon reached on a fielder's choice giving the Blazers an early 1-0 lead. The lead would not last though as the Lady Tigers tied up the game with a solo run of their own in the bottom half of the third inning.

However, the 1-1 tie also did not last long as the Blazers plated four runs in the fourth inning to regain the lead over the Lady Tigers as Jovi Jones got the Blazers started by drawing a walk followed up with a single by Macy Brabham. Jones then scored on single by Marlee Blackwelll, while both Brabham and Blackwell scored as Elizabeth Taggard hit a three-run home run, her first of the season, to give the Blazers a 5-1 lead.

The Lady Tigers scored one run in the fifth and two runs in the sixth to cut the Blazers lead to 5-4, but the Blazers added their final run in the top of the seventh as Kennedy Carruth hit a lead-off double, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Cade Bass, and later scored on a wild pitch, giving the Blazers a 6-4 lead. The Lady Tigers went three-up-and-three-down in the bottom of the seventh sealing the win and the sweep for the Blazers.

Jovi Jones got the start for the Blazers and earned her third win of the season improving to 3-1 overall. Jones earned her first complete game of the season allowing four runs, two earned, on nine hits with one walk and one strikeout. Marlee Blackwell, Elizabeth Taggard, and Allie Gordon had two hits apiece, while all three accounted for the five RBIs in the contest as Blackwell and Gordon had one each with Taggard collecting three RBIs. Kennedy Carruth, Cade Bass, and Macy Brabham had one each during the game. 

The Blazers improve to 11-3 overall and will return to action as they host the Jackson State University Lady Tigers in a solo game on Wednesday, March 10. The action is set to start at 3 p.m.

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