WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Junior utility player
Gabriella Hessenthaler and freshman shortstop
Tayler Vitola each registered four hits and combined to score five runs as UNCW split a doubleheader against Furman in non-conference softball action at Boseman Field on Saturday afternoon.
The Seahawks, who ran their record to 3-12, earned a 10-2 victory in a five-inning affair to begin the twinbill before dropping a 6-5 verdict to Furman, which stands 5-12 after the split.
Hessenthaler and Vitola each went 4-for-7 in the doubleheader to pace the Seahawks' 21-hit attack. Vitola contributed a double and scored twice while Hessenthaler drove in a pair of runs while scoring three times.
Junior catcher
Jada Santiago and junior utility player
Logan Bjorson each chipped in three hits for UNCW. Bjorson also earned the win in the circle in the opener after allowing two runs on two hits in 3.0 innings of relief.
How It Happened – Game 1: UNCW exploded for seven runs on seven hits in the opening frame while sending 12 hitters to the plate. Junior
Janel Gamache provided the big hit in the inning with her third home run of the season, a three-run shot to left center field. Furman plated two runs in the third inning, but the Seahawks answered with three more runs over the final three trips to the plate to secure the run-rule victory.
How It Happened – Game 2: Trailing by a 5-3 margin, Furman took advantage of a two-out error by scoring three runs for a 6-5 lead the Paladins did not relinquish. UNCW tried to mount a comeback in the bottom of the seventh inning by getting two runners on base, but was unable to bring home the tying run.
Notes of Interest: The win in the opener snapped UNCW's eight-game losing streak … All three of the Seahawks' wins this season have come at home … Vitola has hit safely in 10 consecutive games while Hessenthaler has an eight-game hitting streak … The Seahawks set season highs in stolen bases (6), runs scored (10) and hits (11) in the opener … Gamache has accounted for three of the Seahawks' four home runs this season … UNCW outhit Furman in both games, marking the second and third times that has happened this year … The Seahawks have scored in the first inning in 10-of-15 games this season.
Up Next: UNCW and Furman finish the three-game weekend series on Sunday, Mar. 21, with a single game at noon.
