The UT Martin Softball Team opened its home schedule with 6 straight home games last week, winning 5 of those 6. On Thursday the Skyhawks hosted Green Bay in a home doubleheader before matching up with Purdue Fort Wayne and Wright State at the Huddle House Classic.
Game 1- Green Bay
The Skyhawks had no problem in Game 1 with the Phoenix, as they cruised to an 11-2 victory. Senior Hannah Ridolfi got the win in the circle for UTM, allowing just 2 hits across 4 innings of work. A pair of home runs by Aalia Bivens and Kaitlyn Kelley sparked the Skyhawk offense to an 11-2 mercy-rule victory, to open the homestand on the right foot.
Game 2- Green Bay
Game 2 proved to be much more of a battle than its predecessor, as the Phoenix came out firing in the first, leading 4-0 after the top half of the first inning. UT Martin combined for 3 doubles in the bottom half of the inning to knot the game at 4. Green Bay retook the lead in the 4th, but Aalia Bivens erased the deficit with a grand slam over the left-field wall to give UT Martin the 8-5 win. Erin Gallagher notched the win in the circle for UTM.
Huddle House Classic Game 1- Purdue- Fort Wayne
After having no trouble scoring earlier in the week, runs came at a premium in Game 1 of the Huddle House Classic. Aalia Bivens scored Emily Alexander on an RBI-Single to open the scoring and give the Skyhawks the early lead. UTM doubled the lead in the 4th with another RBI-single from Shayenne Sheffield, scoring Paige Clark. The Mastodons scored a run off an error late in the contest before Ridolfi slammed the door to finish off the 2-1 win. Ridolfi dominated in the circle, striking out 7 and allowing no earned runs in a complete-game effort to earn the win.
Huddle House Classic Game 2- Wright State
Pitching was once again the name of the game for UT Martin, as Erin Gallagher put on a clinic in the circle. She struck out 5 batters, and allowed no earned runs or walks in the first shutout victory of her career. Shayenne Sheffield and Kenna Garst combined to score UT Martin 3 runs as the Skyhawks defeated the Raiders 3-0.
Huddle House Classic Game 3- Wright State
In a high scoring affair that was forced into extra innings, Wright State knocked off UT Martin 14-11. An offensive explosion in the 3rd inning by Wright State proved to be too much, as the Raiders scored 9 runs off of 6 hits and 2 errors to take a commanding 10-1 lead. Chayse Skinner racked up 4 RBIs for UTM, 3 on the first home run of her career as the Skyhawks chipped away and tied the game in the 7th. Extra innings proved too much as the Raiders opened the 8th with 4 runs, and UT Martin could only match with 1. Seeley Lane was tagged with the loss in the circle.
Huddle House Classic Game 4- Purdue- Fort Wayne
In the final game of the weekend, UT Martin bounced back from the lone loss with a win over Purdue-Fort Wayne. Both Kaitlyn Kelley and Paige Clark went yard to open up a 5-0 lead while Erin Gallagher only allowed 2 runs in 7 innings, striking out 6 batters en route to another Skyhawk win. The 5-2 win wrapped up a successful 5-1 homestand for the Skyhawks.
The team returns to action tonight as the Skyhawks travel to Knoxville to take SEC and in-state rival Tennessee. You can catch all the action on SEC Network+ starting at 5 p.m.
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