BATON ROUGE, La. — South Alabama split a pair of 2-1 games Saturday in Baton Rouge, losing to Northwestern before beating No. 21 LSU.
The Jaguars, who added the games after wintry weather canceled their scheduled trip to Athens, Ga., are 6-1.
Northwestern 2, South Alabama 1
Northwestern scored both of its runs in the first inning, and both were unearned. Farish Beard hit the leadoff batter, who later scored on a South Alabama error. Mari Majam reached on the error and scored two batters later.
Second baseman Julie Moss cut the lead to 2-1 with a sacrifice fly that scored Amanda Minahan, but South Alabama could not get any closer.
Minahan, Chloe Rathburn and Alex Breeden each went 1-for-3, accounting for all of the Jaguars’ hits. Beard struck out seven and walked one in five innings. The loss was her first since April 18, 2012.
South Alabama 2, No. 21 LSU 1
South Alabama loaded the bases in the top of the first inning. Stephanie Pilkington drew a leadoff walk, Blair Johnson reached on an error by the LSU shortstop and Kaitlyn Griffith singled to right-center. Rathburn then grounded into a fielder’s choice that brought Pilkington home for a 1-0 lead.
LSU tied the game in the bottom of the first with an RBI double to left-center.
The Tigers threatened in the bottom of the fourth with two runners on and one out after Hannah Campbell hit a batter and gave up a single up the middle, but Johnson turned a double play to end the inning.
In the top of the fifth, Pilkington drove in pinch runner Emily Messer, who had entered for Taylor Rodgers after a walk, for the go-ahead run. The RBI added to Pilkington’s team-leading total.
Up Next
South Alabama plays at UAB on Wednesday, then travels to Orlando, Fla., for the Diamond 9 Classic, where it will face Indiana, IPFW, East Carolina, Lehigh, Mercer and Georgia.
