AUBURN Ala. – The Southeastern Louisiana softball team dropped a pair of 9-6 decisions to Troy on the opening day of the Auburn Invitational Friday at Jane B. Moore Field.
In the opener,
Madisen Blackford hit her first home run of the season for SLU (8-8), while
Madison Watson and
Lindsey Rizzo collected two hits apiece.
MC Comeaux (2-3) took the loss in the circle, allowing eight hits in 5.1 innings of work.
The nightcap saw the Trojans (15-4) break a 6-6 tie with a three-run bottom of the sixth inning.
Aeriyl Mass hit her second home run of the season in a 2-for-4 performance at the plate, while
Ella Manzer drove in two runs for Southeastern.
Heather Zumo (6-2) gave up six hits and two earned runs in 5.1 innings of relief in the circle for the Lady Lions.
Southeastern will close out the tournament with a 2:30 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday versus host Auburn.
Game One – Troy 9, Southeastern Louisiana 6
Comeaux and Troy starter Leanna Johnson (8-2) matched zeroes until the Trojans struck first in the bottom of the third inning. A three-run double by Katie Lively staked Troy to the lead. Later in the frame, Anslee Finch singled home Lively and put the Trojans up, 4-0.
Southeastern came right back in its half of the fourth inning. Rizzo led off the frame with a double and scored on a Troy error. Watson singled home a pair of runs to cut the lead to 4-3.
Troy got a run back in the bottom of the fourth, then broke the game open with a three-run sixth inning that extended the lead to 9-3. A two-out, three-run shot over the right centerfield fence by Blackford cut the lead in half, but Johnson recovered to retire Manzer to close out the win.
Game Two – Troy 9, Southeastern Louisiana 6
Southeastern took the early lead in the top of the first inning. Mass led off the game with an inside the park home run to put the Lady Lions up, 1-0.
Troy chased SLU starter
Sophie Hannabas from the game with a five-run bottom of the first inning to take a 5-1 advantage.
Southeastern answered with a five-run frame of its own in the third inning. The Lady Lions took advantage of a pair of Trojan errors, while Blackford, Manzer and Watson all drove in runs in an inning that saw SLU send 10 to the plate and take a 6-5 lead.
Troy knotted the score in the fourth inning on a solo home run by Jade Sinness in the bottom of the fourth inning. RBI by Katie Webb and Lively in the bottom of the sixth broke the tie and gave the Trojans a 9-6 lead.
Troy pitcher Kynsley Rae Blasingame (2-0) held SLU scoreless over the final four innings and retired the Lady Lions in order in the seventh to complete the sweep.
TICKETS
For ticket information, please contact the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466 or visit
www.LionSports.net/tickets. Southeastern is implementing mobile ticketing as the primary source for securing tickets for the 2020-21 season. All tickets will be available via e-mail and text message in a PDF format for fans to download on their phone or print at home. Tickets can also be downloaded to Apple Wallet.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Southeastern Softball, follow @LionUpSoftball on Twitter and Instagram, like /SLUathletics on Facebook and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.
HOME RUN CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the softball program are encouraged to join the Home Run Club. Lady Lion softball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
All membership fees and donations to both the Home Run Club and S Club (softball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern softball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events (softball, baseball, football and basketball), effective with the start of the 2018 football season. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit
www.LionSports.net/clear.
