Cleveland State softball dropped their weekend series with Chattanooga State, falling in three of the four games.
On Friday, Cleveland State (6-11, 2-8) played host to Chattanooga State (7-12, 3-9) and lost two five-inning games, 15-1 and 13-4. The two teams came back on Saturday and split the games, with the Lady Tigers winning the first game 8-5 and Cleveland State winning the nightcap 2-0.
Cleveland State hosts Morton College in a doubleheader on Thursday, with games at 2 and 4 p.m.
Game One
After two quick outs in the first inning, Chattanooga State sent 12 batters to the plate and scored 10 runs on 10 hits.
The Cougars only answer in the five-inning game was two hits, a first inning double by Grayson Brown and a lone single by Bre Dunsmore in the third, who came around to score on an error.
Erin Hollis relieved starting pitcher Kaley Cagle (4-5) to start the second inning and pitched effectively for the remaining four innings.
Game Two
In the 13-4 loss, Cleveland State doubled their hit production in the second game while scoring four runs. AJ Chauncey doubled home Rachel Pierce and Brown in the first inning, who had doubled and walked respectively which tied the score at two. The third inning saw the Cougars plate two more runs on and error and an RBI single by Hannah Jones, which scored Brittany Arnold who walked twice in the game.
Starting Pitcher Haley Hodgson went the five-inning distance taking the loss moving her record to 2-6 on the season. Along with the hits by Pierce, Chauncey and Pierce, Brown singled in the third to round out the Cougar hitting.
Game Three
Cougar softball took a 5-1 lead into the top of the sixth inning but yielded five runs to lose the lead that led to the eventual 8-5 loss. Erin Hollis went the distance and registered a stellar pitching performance in taking the loss moving her record to 0-1 on the young season.
Bryant drove in four of the Cougar runs with a two-run homer in the first inning and a two-run scoring single in the fourth. On the game, Cleveland State had eight hits with Carly Frost, Pierce, Brown, Arnold, Chauncey and Hollis each contributing hits.
Game Four
Cougar starting pitcher Haley Hodgson threw seven innings of three-hit ball to record her first shutout of the season giving her a record of 3-6.
Cleveland State banged out nine hits while leaving the bases loaded on three different occasions. Lead off hitter Frost had three singles while Pierce had a double and a single, driving home the first run of the game in the third inning. Later in the inning Arnold plated Pierce from second base giving the Cougars a 2-0 lead that Hodgson made hold up for the final score.
Bryant was 2-for-3 and Brown was 1-for-2 to round out the hit attack.