Softball Sweeps Day Two of Louisiana Classics

Saturday, February 24

Lafayette, La.

9 AM

University of Memphis

North Florida

Photo by: Ben Solomon

Feb 24, 2018 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Molly Smith and Mariah Nichols pick up wins in the circle

LAFAYETTE, La. – The University of Memphis softball team picked up two more wins Saturday afternoon at the 32^nd Annual Louisiana Classics, defeating North Florida by a score of 5-0 and Southeastern Louisiana by an 8-2 margin. Memphis improves to 7-4 on the year.

"Today was a great day at the park," said head coach Natalie Poole. "We pitched well and hit well today. In the second game, we didn't get off to the start we would have liked, but we recovered quickly and got better as the game went on. I'm proud of our presence, our fight, and our production."

It took four innings for the bats to come alive, but when they did, hits came often for the Tigers. Memphis struck in the fourth and sixth innings against North Florida and was backed in the circle by Molly Smith's second-straight shutout appearance.

Brooke Lee got the offense started early against Southeastern Louisiana with her team-leading third home run of the season. Although errors plagued the Tigers in the top half of the second, the bats came through in the later innings to push Memphis to victory. Mariah Nichols improved to 2-2 on the year with a complete game in the circle. The Tigers have yet to allow an earned run in the tournament.

Who Stood Out
Kyler Trosclair Klatt / SS / Senior / Houma, La.
Trosclair Klatt went 3-for-5 for the day with hits in both contests. She finished with two RBIs and two runs scored for the Tigers.

Addison Maxwell / OF / Senior / Collierville, Tenn.
Maxwell went 4-for-6 from the plate to lead Memphis with a pair of hits in both wins. She scored three runs for Memphis including a team-high two against Southeastern Louisiana. She also recorded RBIs in both wins.

Molly Smith / P / Senior / Yamhill, Ore.
Against North Florida, Smith pitched a complete game shutout with a pair of strikeouts and six hits allowed. She allowed just one extra base hit and lowered her season ERA to 0.37. Smith improved to 4-1 on the year.

Mariah Nichols / P / Freshman / Lone Oak, Texas
In the win over Southeastern Louisiana, Nichols allowed zero earned runs in a complete game. She recorded a career-high seven strikeouts while allowing just four hits. Nichols improved to 2-2 on the year.

Scoring
Game 1 | Memphis 5, North Florida 0

Top 4 – Memphis took advantage of a fielding error, a hit by pitch, and a fielder's choice to load the bases for Addison Maxwell. Maxwell proceeded to earn a five-pitch walk to bring in the first run of the game. Two more bases loaded walks as well as a single down the left field line by Baylee Smith brought in three more runs. (4 runs, 1 hit, 2 errors, 3 left on base)
Top 6 – Kyler Trosclair Klatt led the inning off with an infield single and scored on a single up the middle by Regan Hadley. (1 run, 2 hits, 1 error, 2 left on base)

Game 2 | Memphis 8, Southeastern Louisiana 2

Bottom 1 – Brooke Lee hit a two-run home run, bringing in Trosclair Klatt to put Memphis up 2-0. (2 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 left on base)
Top 2 – Three Memphis errors led to a pair of runs scoring in the top half of the second for the Lions. Southeastern Louisiana did not record a hit in the inning. (2 runs, 0 hits, 3 errors, 0 left on base)
Bottom 2 – Memphis got one run back as Delaney Smith drew a lead-off walk, stole two bases, and scored on a double down the left field line by Erin Parker. (1 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 left on base)
Bottom 3 – Back-to-back hits by Maxwell and Tyler Johnson drove in three runs to put the Tigers up, 6-2. (3 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on base)
Bottom 5 – Delaney Smith recorded a one-out walk and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Johnson. A single to center field by Trosclair Klatt drove in Maxwell, who singled earlier in the inning. (2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on base)

Next Up For The Tigers
Memphis has one more game scheduled at the 32^nd Annual Louisiana Classics against No. 15 UL Lafayette. First pitch is slated for 11:30 a.m. at Lamson Park in Lafayette, La. For more information on the Memphis softball team, follow the Tigers on Twitter at @MemphisSoftball.

Tiger fans can also follow the team's live scoring through the Official Memphis Tigers app by Sidearm, available in both Apple and Android app stores.