CLEVELAND, Miss. (Feb 27, 2010) - The Nova Southeastern softball team split the opening day of the Delta State Tournament on Saturday. They took out the West Georgia Wolves, 7-6 before falling to the Delta State Lady Statesman, 5-4.

Lauren Lopez (Sr., Miami, Fla.) led the Sharks in their win over the Wolves by batting 3-for-4. She scored two runs and had an RBI off a double with two outs on the board. Patty Rivero (Sr., Miami, Fla.) went 2-for-3 in the contest and scored the game winning run off an error in the seventh.

The Wolves and the Sharks went back and forth as each team led multiple times. The Sharks entered the sixth inning in a three run tie but finished the game strong. The team scored four runs in the final two innings and compiled two hits and three walks.

Rivero and Sarah Hart (Jr., Newburgh, Ind.) both scored runs off defensive miscues with two outs in the top of the seventh. The Wolves scored a run in the final inning but could not tie the game up.

Coming off her first career perfect game, Dani Caron (Sr., Wellington, Fla.) allowed four earned runs but also struck out a season-high seven batters. She also hit 1-for-3 and batted in her team's first run of the game. She improved her record to 6-1.

Rivero had another great game in her team's loss to Delta State. She went 2-for-3 with a game-high two RBI. She also had the first hit of the game for the Sharks. After a rough outing against West Georgia, Rachel Talenfeld (Jr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) played well and had two hits, one run, and one RBI.

The Sharks trailed 1-0 for the majority of the game, but tied it up in the top of the sixth when Jessica Hernandez (Sr., Miami, Fla.) scored on a wild pitch. The Sharks would go on to score three more runs in the final inning when Caron, Brittney Lamb (Sr., West Palm Beach, Fla.), and Laura Saladrigas (Fr., Hollywood, Fla.) all scored.

The Lady Statesman would go on to have a comeback rally in the bottom of the seventh. They had four hits in the final inning and eventually tied the game with the bases loaded. Lexi Sarradet (Jr., Miami, Fla.) would hit Chelsea Carr to advance the winning runner home. Her overall record now stand at 4-4.

The Sharks will finish the Delta State Tournament tomorrow morning at 9 am when they take on West Georgia.