WILMINGTON, North Carolina – The UNCW softball team utilized a mix of timely offense and clutch pitching to close out their second home tournament weekend with wins over Providence and UMBC on Sunday evening at Boseman Field.
The Seahawks (8-5) rallied in both contests to beat the Friars (3-6) by a 2-1 score behind junior Kara Hammock's second complete game of the weekend in the afternoon game. UNCW then staged a four-run comeback in the bottom of the seventh inning to erase an early hole to walk off the nightcap vs. the Retrievers (2-5) with a 5-4 verdict.
Head Coach Ashley Wade's club remains home on Wednesday for its first midweek contest of 2024 when the Seahawks host Big Ten opponent Michigan State at 5 p.m.
GAME 1 | UNCW 2, Providence 1
Hammock's third complete game of the season was aided by a sixth-inning rally to help the Seahawks pull out a 2-1 win vs. the Friars.
An early unearned Providence run was erased in the bottom of the sixth that started with a Mary Sobataka triple and Morgan Britt reaching second on a fielding error. With two on, junior Mackenzie Amodeo perfectly placed a bunt back to the pitcher that scored Sobataka and moved Britt to third as Amodeo took second.
Two batters later, freshman Allison Corbin brought home the go-ahead run in Britt on a sacrifice fly to left field.
Hammock (4-2) scattered three hits with five strikeouts for her second win of the weekend. The All-CAA performer stranded two runners in scoring position in the seventh to nail down the victory.
Providence sophomore Riley Quirk (0-4) was tagged with the loss in two innings in relief of starter Alyssa Twomey, who tossed four scoreless frames.
GAME 2 | UNCW 5, UMBC 4
UNCW entered the bottom of the seventh trailing 4-1. Not only were the Seahawks working with three outs, but they also were working against time with the imposed two-hour drop dead time creeping closer.
The Seahawks then exploded with a Lauren Cope pinch-hit walk and three straight singles by Cassidy Relay, Tayler Vitola and Sobatka to score two runs and load the bases with none out. Two batters later, a Retrievers error on an Amodeo batted ball brought home two more runs to win the game, 5-4, with only eight minutes of game time left.
UMBC started the game with three first-inning runs including a two-run home run by freshman Amya Lundy on the third pitch of the game. A pair of walks set up Haley Lugennill's RBI single to drive in the third run of the top of the first giving the Retrievers firm control.
UNCW got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the third with Amodeo driving home Britt, who walked, on a double to right-center. UMBC, however, nullified the run with a four-hit inning that scored one in the top of the fourth.
Seahawk right-handers Emily Winstead, who entered four batters into the game, and Carrigan Ewers (2-2) worked 6.2 innings of one-run ball in relief. Winstead, notably, worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the fourth that set the stage for the Seahawk's comeback three innings later.
UMBC's Kya Matter (1-2) was effective through six innings before UNCW mounted their comeback.
