CARROLLTON, Ga. – The Lee softball team dropped both games of Friday's doubleheader at West Georgia. The Wolves rallied late to top the Lady Flames 11-7 in a slugfest in game one before taking a 3-1 pitcher's duel in the nightcap.
The Lady Flames fall to 9-11 on the year and an even 7-7 in the GSC while West Georgia improves to 15-6 overall and 11-3 in the GSC.
The two teams will wrap the three-game series on Saturday with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m.
"We couldn't put a full game together today," lamented Lee head coach Emily Russell. "We made good adjustments at the plate and had a plan for game one but we couldn't stop them from the circle down the stretch. Game two Taylor (De Adder) gutted out a performance but we couldn't get the offense going Tomorrow we need to be tougher than the situation."
GAME 1 LEE 7 UWG 11
A wild sixth inning proved to be the difference in Friday's opener. Madison Besaw smoked a grand slam to left field to give the Lady Flames a 7-5 lead before the Wolves bounced right back with a six-run bottom of the sixth, highlighted by a grand slam of their own by Alley Taylor to take game one, 11-7.
Besaw finished 2 for 3 with the grand slam and a single while Kayla Louie and Lily Hatcher each added two singles.
Taylor homered twice and ended the contest with five RBI and two runs scored. Kristyn Nix doubled and singled and scored twice while Ashley Ellison, Kayla Hughes and Hannah Scarbrough also recorded multi-hit performances. West Georgia pounded out 13 hits and drew six walks against Lee pitching.
Shonna Penney labored through 3.2 innings allowing three runs on five hits while walking five and striking out four. Mallory Orchard got Lee out of the fourth inning but was tagged for two runs on four hits before giving way to Gracie Leslie (2-4). Leslie tossed two innings in relief and gave up six runs on four hits.
Kya Draper started in the circle for the home team and went 5.2 innings allowing seven runs on eight hits. She was lifted after giving up the grand slam to Besaw. Lexie Close (3-1) closed out the win with 1.1 innings of scoreless work.
GAME 2 LEE 1 UWG 3
After the combining for 18 runs on 22 hits in game one the nightcap was an old-fashion pitcher's duel with West Georgia's Morgan Goree (4-3) out dueling (3-2) Lee's Taylor De Adder, 3-1.
Goree struck out 12 and allowed just one run on two hits as she tossed all seven innings in the circle for the Wolves.
De Adder danced around seven walks and kept the Lady Flames within striking distance as she surrendered three runs on four hits.
Kayla Hughes gave the Wolves the early advantage with a two-run homer in the bottom of the first. Taylor would complete a three home run day and make it 3-0 with a solo blast in the third inning.
Lee's lone run on the game would come off a Laney Harris groundout in the top of the seventh. Hatcher and Besaw accounted for the Lady Flames two singles.
