Beth Keylon-Randolph’s Chattanooga State softball team returned home on Sunday from the Gulf Coast Beach Classic games with a 7-1 won loss mark, moving their overall season record to 22-2. With eight games in three days, the Chattanooga State pitching duo of Ashley Czechner and Janna Scheff gave up 5 runs combined as Tiger softball bested the top 20 nationally ranked teams of Chipola, Wallace-Hanceville and Lake Land College.
Also falling at the hands of the Tigers were Georgia Perimeter and Gulf Coast, perennial national tournament participants and Northwest Florida State.
On day one of the games, Chattanooga State managed only 3 runs but came away with two wins while losing once, 1-0 to host college Gulf Coast. Lakeland College saw a 1-0 lead slip away in the 7th inning when Kortney Koroll singled home two runs to give the Tigers their first win of the day, 2-1. In the final game of the day, Czechner tossed a one hitter, beating Wallace 1-0, as Chattanooga State pushed across a run in the top of the 7th on an Andie Johnson single to right, driving home Shelby Johnson who had doubled to start the inning.
Day two featured Tiger hitting along with the Czechner and Scheff pitching tandem. First, Scheff, beating Northwest Florida 7-1, followed by Scheff again with a 4-0 shutout over Georgia Perimeter. The evening game saw the Tigers explode for nine runs vs. #7 nationally ranked Chipola State College in a 6-inning game that featured a game ending homerun by Chelsea Burgess in the Czechner pitched win.
On the final day of the games Chattanooga State came back with another win vs. Chipola when Burgess started the scoring in the 3rd with a homerun to left field followed by a 5th inning, 2-run homer by Andrea Dalton for the final margin of victory in the 3-1 win. The day ended when Chattanooga State used a nine hit attack to beat Gulf Coast 6-0, scoring one run in the 1st followed by three runs in the 5th and two in the 7th. Czechner won her 5th game of the weekend by allowing only one hit.
“Every coach dreams about putting together a team like this,” said Keylon-Randolph. “Czechner and Scheff gives us a one/two punch from the pitching mound while the special combination of power and speed in the line-up is a confidence builder for the entire team. Intense practice and tough competition can only help us as we get ready for conference play.”
Chattanooga State’s home opener is this Sunday with a doubleheader vs. Sauk Community College starting at 10 a.m. Home games are played on the campus of Chattanooga State at Tiger Softball Field. Admission is free.