GULF SHORES, Ala. - The #5 ranked Nova Southeastern Softball team kicked off their 2024 campaign at the Gulf Shore Invitational. NSU dropped a pair of non-conference matchups, falling to Auburn Montgomery 4-1 and West Alabama 7-6.
(GAME ONE)
Score: No. 5 Nova Southeastern 1 (L: A. Drogemuller, 0-1) | Auburn Montgomery 4 (W: A. Goble, 1-0)
Records: No. 5 Nova Southeastern (0-1) | Auburn Montgomery (1-0)
Location: Gulf Shores, Ala. | Gulf Shores Complex
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BOT 2nd - The Warhawks put the first run on board with an RBI single to left field.
BOT 3rd – AUM continued to put pressure on the Sharks, homering to left field, extending their lead to 2-0.
BOT 4th – Auburn Montogomery tacked on another run after a fielder's choice.
TOP 5th – Gianna Russo got the action started for NSU, homering to left field and cutting the Sharks deficit to two runs.
BOT 5th – The Warhawks scored another run, ultimately securing the 4-1 victory over NSU.
(GAME TWO)
Score: Nova Southeastern 6 (L: A. Drogemuller, 0-2), West Alabama 7 (W: M. Wright, 1-0)
Records: Nova Southeastern (0-2), West Alabama (1-0)
TOP 1st – The Tigers struck first off an error, taking the early 1-0 lead.
BOT 3rd – Alexis Smith kicked off the action with a double through the left side. Shortly after, Alyssa Drogemuller singled to left field, bringing Smith across home plate for the Sharks first run of the game. Then with one runner on base, Brenna Lokeinsky homered, extending the Shark lead to 3-1.
TOP 4th – West Alabama answered with two runs of their own, tying the match at three.
BOT 5th – Lokeinsky earned another RBI with a single through the left side, bringing the score to 4-3 in favor of NSU.
TOP 6th – The Tigers weren't going away easy, tacking on two more runs to reclaim the lead.
BOT 7th – Madison Fine joined the back-and-forth affair with a double down the left field line, bringing Smith home to tie the match.
TOP 8th – In extra innings, a two-run homerun gave the Tigers a 7-5 lead.
BOT 8th – A double from Gianna Russo brought a runner home for the Sharks but it wasn't enough to complete the comeback. Nova Southeastern dropped today's matchup 7-6 against the West Alabama Tigers.
Head Coach Julie LeMaire: "We faced two very tough teams today and it gave us an idea of where we are at and some things we need to improve on moving forward. We clean up some mistakes and execute better a-bats, then we would be sitting in a good position. The girls showed some fight today that I look forward to them taking into tomorrow's games".
NSU will take the field again tomorrow, Saturday, February 3rd, and take on West Georgia at 1:30 p.m. and West Florida at 4:00 p.m.
