TAMPA, FEB. 27, 2015 – The Bulls are off to a great start in the USF Under Armour Invitational after grabbing two wins on Friday at the USF Softball Stadium.
USF improved to 10-7 on the season following a 5-2 win over Illinois in game one of the day and a 3-2 victory over Georgia Southern in game two.
Lee Ann Spivey had two hits and three RBIs on the day while Juli Weber blasted a walk-off homer to lift the Bulls past the Eagles.
“Both those teams gave us their best pitching and both those teams gave us their best offense,” head coach Ken Eriksen said. “We have to expect that people are going to come and throw their number ones at us and play hard because you know if you win a ballgame down here at USF, against this team and in this ballpark, it means a lot and motivates a lot of teams.”
Game 1: USF 5, Illinois 2
Spivey launched a two-run homer and Erica Nunn pitched a complete game in USF's 5-2 win over Illinois on Friday afternoon.
Spivey tied the game in the first inning with her third home run of the season and sent another Bull home during a decisive three-run fifth inning for the Bulls. Nunn (Apex, N.C.) scattered five hits and gave up two earned runs with five strikeouts in seven innings of work to earn her third win of the season.
The Bulls' fireworks at the plate started right away in the first of two games Friday at the USF Under Armour Invitational.
Illinois (6-11) grabbed a 2-0 lead in the top of the first before the Bulls evened things up in the bottom half of the frame. Weber (Hegins, Pa.) hit a one-out single and Spivey cleared the bases with a home run over the right field wall. Spivey now has 17 homers as a Bull after hitting 10 as a sophomore in 2014.
The Bulls stayed busy on the base paths during a three-run fifth inning that featured another RBI from Spivey. The junior from Palm Coast, Fla., was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Ta'coia Williams followed with a two-run single that hopped off the wall in left field. Williams (West Palm Beach) has three hits in her first six at-bats of the season with four RBIs.
- TOM ZEBOLD | USF Senior Writer
Game 2: USF 3, Georgia Southern 2
Weber hit her second-career home run to lead the Bulls to a walk-off win over Georgia Southern in Friday's finale.
USF grabbed an early lead thanks to an RBI single by Kristen Wyckoff in the second inning that scored Kenya Yancy (Bradenton, Fla.) from second.
The Eagles answered back with two runs in the top of the third. Lexi Allen singled to score Taylor Rogers and Alesha Mann had an RBI groundout to give the Eagles a 2-1 lead.
The Bulls tied it at two in the fifth thanks to a throwing error on Georgia Southern's second baseman, allowing Wyckoff (Plant City, Fla.) to come around and score.
After 6 1/3 solid innings from starter Sam Greiner (Sparta, N.J.), the Bulls brought in Karla Claudio with runners on first and second with only one out in the seventh. The senior from San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico got USF out of the jam with two straight strikeouts and set the stage for the Bulls walk-off in the bottom of the frame.
Weber came to the plate with nobody on and two outs following a strikeout and a groundout to start the inning. Moments later, Weber hammered a 2-0 pitch over the right field wall to give the Bulls their 10th win this season before being mobbed by her teammates gathered around home plate.
“Coach called timeout right before my at-bat and he said expect middle-in and that's what I did and I hit a home run,” Weber said.
With hits in both games on Friday, Weber extended her hit-streak to 15 games and has now reached base in all 17 contests this season.
Picking up two straight wins was just what the Bulls wanted heading into their first games away from home this weekend.
“The two wins are huge, especially coming off last weekend,” Weber said. “I just want to give credit to our pitching staff … I just really wanted to clinch this for them.”
USF continues play in the Under Armour Invitational with two games on Saturday at the Eddie C. Moore Complex in Clearwater, Fla. It will be the first games away from home for the Bulls this season as they face off against Sacred Heart at 2:45 p.m. and Illinois-Chicago immediately following. Purchase tickets HERE.
Be sure to follow USF softball on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. The USF softball program has been one of the most successful on campus, making 12 NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Women's College World Series in 2012. The Bulls made their third consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament last season and posted their 14th season with 40 plus wins under head coach Ken Eriksen.
- #GoBulls –
