Softball Goes 2-3 on the Weekend

Belmont Softball kicked off its season in Atlanta, Georgia, at the Buzz Classic tournament this weekend.  

The Bruins first faced off against Western Kentucky on Friday, defeating the Hilltoppers 7-1.  

Belmont started strong in the first inning and made it tough for the Hilltoppers to rally back. 

With 4 RBI singles and taking advantage of field errors, the Bruins scored five runs in the bottom of the first inning. 

Emily Cockrill added another RBI single to extend the Bruins’ lead to 6-0 at the end of the third, totaling 3 RBIs for her in the game. 

Despite a roaring first inning, both teams settled into the game. 

With tight defense, the Bruins held the Hilltoppers scoreless until the top of the 4th.  

WKU brought a run in and despite having runners in scoring position, Belmont was not able to come back. 

Going three up, three down, Belmont finished on top 7-1. 

 Later that day, the Bruins faced off against Georgia Tech, the host of the tournament.  

Both teams were able to get runners on base but kept hitting a roadblock when trying to score. 

Through a cut-throat battle, both teams attempted to get runners on and score. 

But with both teams holding off with sharp defense, the game was tied going into the seventh inning 0-0. 

In the bottom of the seventh, Georgia Tech hit a walk-off to finish the game and secured a victory 1-0, the Bruins’ first loss of the weekend.  

After a break on Friday, the Bruins returned to the dirt on Saturday for a rematch against Western Kentucky. 

The Bruins started Saturday in the complete opposite fashion of the last time they played the Hilltoppers, scoring no runs and letting Western Kentucky score twice in the first inning.  

The Bruins appeared on the scoreboard at the top of the third inning, however, the Hilltoppers responded by putting another point on the board. 

Despite a double by Cockrill in the top of the fourth, the rest of the innings ended scoreless, making the final 3-1. 

Despite the loss, there was no recovery time, as their next matchup started right away against Eastern Kentucky.  

The early momentum looked promising for the Bruins, as bases were loaded at the top of the first. Despite a promising scoring setup, no runs scored.  

Finishing 0-2 on Saturday, the Bruins were ready to bounce back for the final day of The Buzz Classic.  

The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the third, where the Colonels offense picked up and brought 2 runs in.  

Holding onto the same momentum, Eastern Kentucky was able to put three more runs on the board at the bottom of the fourth, extending their lead to 5-0.  

The Bruins were able to respond by putting runners on base.  

Freshman Rylee Spindler hit a 2 RBI single, putting Belmont on the board at the top of the sixth. 

Unfortunately, it was not enough to defeat the Colonels.  

Belmont lostl 2-5, going into Sunday 1-3 in the tournament. 

Finishing off the weekend, the Bruins rematched against the Colonels on Sunday.  

Maya Johnson pitched for the Bruins, throwing 13 strikeouts and shutting down every chance of offensive play the Colonels could have had. 

Through their tight defense, the Bruins were able to hold the Colonels scoreless for the entirety of the game, resulting in a 4-0 shutout to close their weekend, going 2-3 overall. 

The Bruins will travel out west this weekend to compete in another tournament hosted by Arizona State University. 

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This article was written by Emily Garver