CLERMONT, Fla. – The Nova Southeastern University softball team (6-16, 1-8 SSC) split day one of the NTC Spring Games with a 7-2 victory over Upper Iowa University (13-8) and a 5-3 loss to Ferris State University (14-6) on Friday night.
Megan Granitto (Fr., Wellington, Fla.) picked up her second win of the season (2-3) giving up five hits, two walks but picking up five strikeouts. She also went 1-for-3 with a RBI and run scored in the win over Upper Iowa. Brooke Redmond (7-3) earned the loss for the Peacocks.
While
Dajia Jones (Jr., Jacksonville, Fla.) started the second game, she would only pitch one and a third innings as
Erica Winter (Fr., Blaine, Minn.) came in to relieve her in the bottom of the second. Winter (2-6) got the loss giving up seven hits, three earned runs, three walks and earning one strikeout. Bulldogs relief pitcher Megan Vanderwal (2-0) got the win for Ferris State while Megan Jean got her second save of the season.
Game 1The Sharks were on the board first with one run in the bottom of the first inning off a sacrifice fly in foul territory by Jones allowed
Rachel Minier (Jr., Orlando, Fla.) to score.
Upper Iowa would match the Sharks run in the top of the third. NSU would answer in the bottom of the fourth would see six Shark runs off of five hits and four Peacock errors. The inning started with a single from Jones followed by a double to left field by
Haley Gonzales (So., Boca Raton, Fla.).
Upper Iowa would bring in a new pitcher but she would give up a RBI single to her first batter Granitto. Gonzales would then score on a bad throw from the catcher attempting a pickoff and Granitto would score on a single by Devesa to put NSU up 4-1. Devesa was then driven home by a double from
Jessie Brown (Jr., Hollywood, Fla.).
More errors followed as
Ashley Roe (Jr., Flower Mound, Texas), Minier and
Katey Blummer (Jr., Naples, Fla.) all reached safely off of Peacock errors. Brown would score on an error and pitcher Brooke Redmond would walk Gonzales to bring in the Sharks seventh run.
The offense was led by Devesa who went 2-for-3 with a RBI and a run scored and Minier who went 3-for-4 with one run scored. Seven of the Sharks' starting nine had at least one hit.
Game 2Ferris State's offense began to heat up in the bottom of the second as they put up two runs on two hits. The Sharks got out of the inning with the bases loaded as Winter got back-to-back infield popups to end the inning.
NSU plated a run in the top of the fourth off a solo homerun by Jones, which was her second of the season. The Bulldogs would respond by putting up two more runs in the bottom of the inning to go up 4-1.
With her first homerun of the year, Granitto cut the Bulldogs' lead to two in the top of the fifth. Ferris State would score again in bottom of the sixth off of two hits to go up 5-2. NSU would try to stage a rally in the top of the seventh beginning with an infield single by Jones who went 2-for-3 with a RBI and run scored in the game. With two runners on, Devesa picked up her second RBI of the night with a single to right field to score Gonzales. Brown would hit into a double play to end the game.
NSU will face St. Thomas Aquinas College and Wayne State University on Saturday, March 11 at 1 and 3 p.m., respectively. For links to live video, audio and stats, please click HERE.
