ARLINGTON, Texas – The UT Arlington softball team (15-14, 5-3 SBC) split a doubleheader against the Georgia Southern Eagles on Friday, winning game one 7-1 before falling in game two 10-3.
 
It was a tale of two games for the Mavericks pitching staff.  Randi Phillips (8-7) picked up the start in game one, tossing a complete game.  She allowed just one run, occurring in the seventh inning. JoJo Valencia (3-3) started game two, but lasted just 1.2 innings before being replaced by Allie Gardiner.  Valencia and Gardiner, along with Laura Henriksen, allowed 10 runs off 15 hits, while striking out four batters.
 
The Mavs finished with 10 hits in the first game, including Laura Curry going a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate. In game two, UTA finished with just five hits, with Krista Rude, Curry, Reagan Wright, Aileen Garcia and Brittany Wyllie each coming away with one.
 
GAME ONE RECAP
UTA got the ball rolling in the first inning with a Laura Curry bunt.  A throwing error allowed Rude to score.
 
In the fourth inning, the Mavs loaded the bases.  The Eagles walked on run across the plate before Curry knocked in one more with a single through the left field gap to make it 3-0.
 
The Mavs exploded in the sixth inning with four more runs.  With the bases loaded again, Shelbi Court was hit by a pitch to score the first run.  Wright, Garcia and Wyllie each batted in one run to push the score to 7-0.
 
The Eagles broke their scoreless streak in the bottom of the seventh with a solo home run, but that was all they could muster.
 
GAME TWO RECAP
Georgia Southern used their leftover momentum from the home run in game one to score first in the game two, taking a 4-0 lead in the second inning, with all runs coming with two outs.
 
UTA answered in the bottom frame, beginning with an Aileen Garcia solo home run to left field.  Rude and Curry added to their RBI total, each bring in one run to make it a 4-3 game after two, but that would be the last the Mavs would score.
 
The Eagles used a trio of home runs to increase their lead to seven.  The first came in the third with a solo shot.  A two-run home run in the sixth extended the lead to four, before a three-run blast made it a 10-3 ballgame in the seventh inning.
 
UP NEXT
UTA will return to Allan Saxe Field on Sunday, March 24 with a noon game against Georgia Southern to wrap up the series.