No. 5 Ladyjacks Survive Late Rally to Upset No. 4 Central Arkansas
Southland Conference
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LAKE CHARLES, La. –No. 5 Stephen F. Austin (26-25, 13-12 Southland) upset No. 4 Central Arkansas (35-21, 16-11 Southland), 4-3, Wednesday afternoon at the Cowgirl Diamond on the campus of McNeese in Lake Charles, La. With the win, the Ladyjacks advance to the second round to take on No. 1 seed McNeese later today.
It didn’t take long for both teams to get on the board. Sophomore outfielder Annie Mehringer bombed a two-run homer deep left field to bring in junior first baseman Brittany Lewis and give SFA 2-0 lead in the first inning. Bears first baseman Audrey Pratt responded with a solo home run in the second.
Both pitchers came out strong after a 45 minute rain delay in the bottom of the third. SFA’s Callee Guffrey and UCA’s Shivaun Landeros combined for only two allowed hits through the fifth. Guffrey retired eight straight giving up three runs on seven hits in a complete game.
The Ladyjacks finished strong, totaling three hits for two runs and a 4-1 lead going into the bottom of the seventh. Pinch runner Alisa Hamilton and catcher Taylor Fraccastoro advanced to score both runs.
A two-run single by outfielder Briana Whisenhunt brought the Bears within one. Their rally was cut short as SFA shortstop caught a game-saving line drive by second baseman Sarah Bigej to put the game away.
SFA will now play top-seeded McNeese (39-12, 23-4 Southland) later today from the Cowgirl Diamond. This will be their first meeting of the season. McNeese has an overall record of 14-2 at home this season
Central Arkansas will now play at 1:30 p.m. tomorrow afternoon in the second game of back-draw play. The Bears opponent will be against the loser of tonight’s game between No. 2 seed Nicholls and No. 3 Lamar.
Tournament play continues this afternoon in Lake Charles, La., with the Colonels taking on the Cardinals at approximately 5 p.m.
The Southland title game is slated for a 2 p.m. start Friday with a possibility of second game for the tournament championship. The 11th game would be played in the event an undefeated team lost in the title game forcing a second game for the tournament championship, upholding the double elimination format. Game 11 start time is to be determined.
For more information on the tournament, including a link to
live stats, please visit
Southland.org. For updates and the most current information throughout the tournament please follow the Southland Conference on twitter at SouthlandSports and use the hashtag #SLCSoftball.
The first nine games of the 2016 Southland Softball Tournament will be streamed live for free on the Southland Conference Digital Network, including
Southland.org/watch and the league's mobile and tablet apps. The championship round will be an exclusive presentation of ESPN3, available via
WatchESPN.com and the WatchESPN app. Chris Mycoskie, Assistant Commissioner of Television and Electronic Media for the Southland Conference, will handle play-by play for all games. Former University of Houston outfielder Sydney Gerbracht will join him for the championship as the color analyst.