TAMPA, MARCH 17, 2015 – The USF softball team has now won 20 of its last 21 games after sweeping Tuesday night's doubleheader against Hartford and Canisius at the USF Softball Stadium.
The Bulls used two complete-game shutouts from Sam Greiner and Erica Nunn to improve to 28-8 on the year. The two pitchers allowed only six base runners combined in the two games as USF outscored Hartford and Canisius 17-0.
“Obviously they (the pitchers) were very, very efficient tonight and effective,” head coach Ken Eriksen said. “To save the arms of Wysocki, who's thrown a lot, and Claudio, obviously as you know has thrown a lot, so it was pretty good timing to get those innings in and save some arms tonight.”
GAME 1: USF 9, Hartford 0 (5 Inn.)
Senior pitcher Sam Greiner threw a one-hit shutout as the Bulls were dominant in game one of the evening,flying past Hartford for a 9-0 win in five innings.
Kristen Wyckoff scored on a throwing error by the Hawks in the bottom of the first to open the scoring and the Bulls blew the game open with six runs in the second inning.
Wyckoff singled home Kenya Yancy for her 19th RBI this season and D'Anna Devine continued her solid play at the plate with her third RBI single in two games to bring home Wyckoff. Morgan Litchfield capped off the inning with a three-run shot to left-center field for her first home run of the season to make it 7-0.
USF added two more runs in the fourth to finish off the scoring. Cassidy Boyle drew a bases-loaded walk and Meagan Leddy drove in her first-career run with a sacrifice fly to give the Bulls a 9-0 lead.
Greiner was nearly perfect in the circle, pitching a complete-game, one-hit shutout to earn her eighth win of the season. The senior from Sparta, N.J. now leads the team and is tied for third in the American in wins.
“I was working on a couple things in the bullpen and I felt really good going into the game,” Greiner said. “Me and Mia (Fung) work really well together and my defense obviously played great behind me.”
GAME 2: USF 7, Canisius 0
Erica Nunn threw the second complete-game shutout of the day for the Bulls as they cruised past Canisius, 7-0, in the finale of Tuesday's doubleheader.
Nunn was sharp from the start and struck out nine batters while only giving up three hits to improve to 7-4 on the season.
Lee Ann Spivey came into the day ranked 11th in the country with 38 RBIs and added to that total with a three-run homer to right center to open the scoring in the first inning. Kristen Wyckoff led off the frame with a single and D'Anna Devine walked to put two runners on base for the Bulls' slugger, who didn't disappoint as she launched her conference-leading eighth home run of the season.
Canisius loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the second, but Nunn got out of the jam by turning a 1-2-3 double play and forcing a pop up to keep the Griffins off the board.
A big four-run fourth inning helped the Bulls take complete control of the game. Cassidy Boyle singled to start the inning and scored on Wyckoff's fourth triple this season. Devine followed with an RBI single for the third straight game, and two more runs came in to score on a dropped fly ball by the Griffins' left fielder to make it 7-0 USF.
Nunn shut the door from there, retiring the last nine Canisius batters to help the Bulls improve to 18-1 this month.
The Bulls open American Athletic Conference play this weekend when they head to Houston for a three-game series against the Cougars.
Sam Greiner was thrilled to be able to pick up two more wins tonight to give the team more confidence heading into their conference opener.
“We have that momentum and we'll take that right into Friday, Saturday and Sunday going out to Houston. We have the confidence that we know that we can play with anybody, on any field, at any time.”
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.
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