Hill records four RBIs in Game 2

Box Score 1
Box Score 2
GREENSBORO, March 11, 2009 – The North Carolina A&T softball team got another strong pitching performance from Jennifer Luper and took advantage of Gardner-Webb mistakes to defeat the Bulldogs 3-1 in the first game of a doubleheader played at the Lady Aggies Softball Complex.

In the second game, Ryanne Hill added to her team-leading RBI totals by recording four to lead the Aggies to a 7-2 win. For the Aggies, it was a nice step forward after losing the last four games of the Charleston Southern Low Country Invitational over the weekend.

The Aggies were shutout in the last two games of that invitational. There was no offensive explosion in the first game on Wednesday either. But Luper remained steady on the mound, and the Bulldogs became shaky in the field. Luper, who has walked only 17 players in the 70.2 innings she has thrown this season, pitched seven innings without giving up a walk and she struck out five Bulldogs in the process.

Her teammates gave her some help in the fourth inning. Channing Statham reached first base even after striking out because Bulldogs catcher Mckenzie Morenus dropped the ball after Statham swung at the third strike.

Lillian Bullock then reached on a fielder’s choice after Hill – who singled earlier – was thrown out trying to go home. But the Bulldogs mistakes continued to hamper them as Larson reached first on a throwing error that allowed Statham and Bullock to score.

The Bulldogs cut into the Aggies lead in the sixth thanks to an RBI double from Melody Harrell that scored Angie Walls to make it 2-1. After the Aggies added a run in the home half of the sixth, the Bulldogs did give Luper a bit of a scare in the seventh.

Back-to-back singles from Morenus and Ashley Whitlock put runners on first and third with two outs. But Luper (6-4) got Walls to groundout to end the game.

Sasha Philpot, the Aggies starter for Game 2, received more run support. But she was also effective in her outing. Philpot pitched seven innings and struck out two to improve to 4-3 on the season.

Hill went 2-for-4 at the plate, and Yahamma White also had two hits. Hill’s two-run RBI double was the Aggies only hit in a five-run fifth inning that broke the game open. Hill also had a two-run RBI triple in the third that scored Jessie Larson and Sherika Laughlin. The Aggies will be back in action this weekend at the Winthrop Invitational.