CLEARWATER, Fla., Feb. 20, 2022 – The University of South Florida softball team finished with a 3-1 record at a talent-filled St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational after a 1-1 record on the tournament's last day.
 
The Bulls (6-2) started with a tightly contested battle against No. 25 Auburn, but fell 5-1, before responding with a 2-1 win over Wisconsin to wrap up the tourney.
 
Game 1 – AU 5, USF 1
Auburn took the lead in the top of the second, with a runner scoring on a ground out to take a 1-0 edge. The Tigers built on the lead in the fourth with two runners scoring on an RBI single and double to push the lead to 3-0.
 
Auburn added another in the fifth on a solo home run from Nelia Peralta. The Bulls got on the board in the bottom of the inning as Megan Pierro (Lutz, Fla.) scored on a Dezarae Maldonado (Winter Haven, Fla.) ground out.
 
The Tigers sealed the game in the seventh, scoring a runner on a sacrifice fly to cement a 5-1 win.
 
Game 2 - USF 2, WIS 1
A pitching duel ensued in the Bulls' second game of the day. Through two innings, neither team was able to break through, leaving the game in a 0-0 tie.
 
Wisconsin would ultimately end the stalemate in the third, plating a run on an error.
 
The stalemate resumed until the sixth, when the Bulls broke through to tie the game. Alexis Johns (Sarasota, Fla.) reached on a bunt single with two outs then stole second, her sixth of the year. Meghan Sheehan (Forest Hill, Md.) tied the game in the next at-bat with an RBI single.
 
Alanah Rivera (St. Petersburg, Fla.) kickstarted South Florida's offense in the seventh with a leadoff double down the left-field line. After Rivera was relieved on the basepaths by Emilee Hanlon, Vivian Ponn (Fort Myers, Fla.) drove her home to give the Bulls a 2-1 victory.
 
Georgina Corrick (Sanford, Fla.) moved to 5-0 on the season with the victory, striking out 13 for a new season best. The senior allowed only one walk and one run, unearned, in the game.
 
Notables

• USF's 6-2 record through eight games is the team's best mark since 2012, a team that later made the Women's College World Series.
• Corrick's final line for the weekend: 21 IP, 3-0, 1 SHO, 3 CG, 10 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 28 SOs.
• Pierro finished three-for-six with two doubles and a triple on the day.
• Johns ended three-for-six with a run and a stolen base.
• Foreman continued her hot bat throughout the weekend, hitting .556 in nine at-bats with a double, an RBI and two sacrifice hits.

 
Up Next
The Bulls return to the USF Softball Stadium next weekend for another tournament, batting St. John's, Saint Joseph's and Fairfield.
 
About USF Softball
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 16 NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Women's College World Series in 2012. 
– #GoBulls –