Corrick earned both wins as USF outscored its opponents, 12-3, in the opening day of the USF Tournament
TAMPA, Fla., March 6, 2020 – The University of South Florida softball team defeated both of its opponents on Friday evening, closing out the first day of the USF Tournament with an 8-3 win over UMass and a 4-0 victory against Iowa State.
Georgina Corrick earned both wins in the circle, throwing 8.2 shutout innings across the two games, while AnaMarie Bruni (Schwenksville, Pa.) and Bethaney Keen (Bradenton, Fla.) each tallied two RBIs across the two games. Brooke Leistl (Valrico, Fla.) also tied her season high with two stolen bases against UMass.
USF 8, UMass 3
USF and UMass battled back and forth for most of the game. The Minutewomen scored first, taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the second. The Bulls wasted no time responding, with Dezarae Maldonado (Winter Haven, Fla.) driving home pinch-runner Alexis Buchman (Tampa, Fla.) to tie the game at 1-1.
The Minutewomen took the lead again in the third off of a solo home run. Afterwards, pitchers dueled until the fifth, when Brooke Hartman (Port Orange, Fla.) drove home her 12th run of the year to even the score heading to the sixth.
UMass reclaimed the lead with another solo homer, but USF opened the floodgates in the bottom half of the inning. Kelsey Lay (West Palm Beach, Fla.) drove in Keen, her first RBI of the year, to once again tie the game.
In the next at-bat, Natalie Zweig (Tampa, Fla.) scored on an error off a single from Meghan Sheehan (Forest Hill, Md.) to give the Bulls the 4-3 lead. Bruni kept the rally going, driving home both Lay and Sheehan, while Brooke Leistl extended USF’s lead to four by singling home Bruni. Keen capped the scoring by singling home Brooke Leistl to end the scoring at 8-3.
Corrick, who entered in relief in the sixth, shut the door on the Minutewomen in the seventh to give USF the victory.
USF 4, Iowa State 0
In game two, Corrick picked up where she left off. The junior retired the first 12 batters in order to keep Iowa State off the board to start the second game of the day.
USF scored first, with Sheehan doubling home Jordyn Kadlub (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) in the bottom of the third to give the Bulls a 1-0 lead. South Florida added on to the lead in the fourth, with Bailee Leistl (Valrico, Fla.) scoring on a passed ball and Megan Pierro (Lutz, Fla.) crossing home plate on a wild pitch to extend USF’s lead to three.
Keen finished the scoring in the fifth, driving home Brooke Leistl on a sacrifice fly to make the score at 4-0.
Corrick kept dealing to complete her two-hit, complete game shutout. Carrying a no-hitter into the sixth, the Sanford, Fla., native struck out eight in her seven innings to shut down the Cyclones offense and earn her ninth win of the season.
Quotable
Coach Jessica Moore on the offensive production in today’s games…
“Iowa State and UMass are good teams, so it was good to see our offense come out. I think we capitalized on some mistakes that they made and created some havoc. It was good for us to push them across in those innings.”
Notables
- Bruni moved up to No. 9 on USF’s all-time stolen bases list with her 57th career swipe in the win over UMass.
- Brooke Leistl went 6-for-8 at the plate in the two wins, adding two runs to her total as well.
- Bruni drove in a season-high two RBIs against UMass.
- Epperson tallied a career-high two walks in the victory over UMass.
Up Next
The Bulls continue in the USF Tournament by closing out round-robin play against Wisconsin at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Following the end of the round robin, the semifinals will be played on Saturday night while the finals will be played on Sunday morning.
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 15 NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Women’s College World Series in 2012.
– #GoBulls –
