NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Belmont Softball used dominating play on both sides of the ball to come away with a pair of wins over crosstown rival Tennessee State on Wednesday. The Bruins (8-12, 4-7 OVC) picked up a 5-2 win over Tennessee State (5-14) in the opening game before recording the team's first shutout of the season, 7-0, in the nightcap.
TSU managed to plate a run in the bottom of the first inning but the Bruins were quick to respond in top of the following inning. Sophomore Kailey Brown (San Antonio, Texas) reached on a fielding error and was quickly joined on base by MyKayla Spurlin (Madisonville, Ky.) and Jessica Parente (Verona, Wisc.), who were hit by a pitch and walked, respectively. With the bases loaded, senior Cheyenne Cavanaugh (Spring, Texas) knocked a double to right fence to clear the bases, putting BU ahead, 3-1.
BU held onto the two-run advantage until the top of the fifth frame. Cavanaugh laid a solid bunt and was followed by sophomore Abi Ledbetter (Livingston, Tenn.) who singled up the middle. Junior Audrey Lyle (Westlake, Ohio) sent a double to left to add a run. However, the Lady Tigers were able to add one in their half of the same inning, cutting the run differential in half, 4-2.
In the top of the sixth, Belmont worked to add an additional run. Parente reached on four balls and freshman Savannah Halterman (Nashville, Tenn.) came in to pinch run. She immediately bolted for second base to log a stolen base before a TSU throwing error allowed her to cross the plate and put BU up, 5-2. Belmont was able to hold on to win the game by the same score.
In the nightcap, the contest was locked in a 0-0 stalemate for the first three innings of play. In the top of the fourth, the Bruins exploded. A double to left by senior Elison Ollinger (Robins, Iowa) kicked off the scoring onslaught that resulted in four runs going over the plate. TSU had no answers offensively for the hot-hitting Bruins.
In the top of the fifth, Lyle was walked and saw freshman Gabrielle Givers (Milton, Ga.) come in to pinch run. Sophomore Lauren Veltri (Clarksville, Tenn.) smashed a double to the fence to add the sixth run of the game. Even with a pitching change by TSU, Belmont could not be stopped. Brown hit a single deep to left to send Veltri home and put the visitors ahead, 7-0. The Bruins then leaned on senior Autumn McDanel (Moravia, Iowa) inside the circle to seal the deal in the waning innings as she was able to record her first shutout of the season with the win.
For the day, Cavanaugh hit .714 with five hits, a run scored, a double, a triple and three RBI. Lauren Veltri hit .571 with three runs, four hits, a pair of doubles and two RBI.
Inside the circle, McDanel went the distance in game two and earned her first shutout of the season. Freshman Alex Clesi (Mandeville, La.) logged 5.0 innings in game one as McDanel was able to come away with her first save in the win. The pair combined for 12 strikeouts.
Belmont returns to action on Saturday, March 28 with a stop at Austin Peay to open a three-game series. Live stats will be available for all contests. Fans can also follow the team's Twitter account (@belmontsoftball) for live, in-game updates.
