Monday, February 18, 2002

Johnson City, Tenn. (Feb. 16, 2002) - The East Tennessee State Buccaneer softball team fell in their first two games of the University of South Carolina Gamecock Invitational, falling to Jacksonville State, 2-0, and to Tennessee Tech, 5-0, Saturday from Columbia, S.C. In Saturday's first game, a pitching duel developed between ETSU's (0-2) Marsha Giles (Jonesborough, Tenn.) and Jacksonville State's (1-0) Tara Ross. Both pitchers pitched complete games with Ross giving up four hits and Giles surrendering five. But Jacksonville State was able to solve Giles for two runs while ETSU was shutout by Ross. ETSU's four hits came from first baseman Melanie Collins (Greeneville, Tenn.), designated player Julia Chance (Knoxville, Tenn.), center fielder Danielle Spetar (Knoxville, Tenn.) and shortstop Mary Beth Hazelwood (Knoxville, Tenn.). In Saturday's second game, the Bucs got another complete game, this time from Tiffany Vandergriff (Sale Creek, Tenn.), but were again shut out, 5-0, by Tennessee Tech (1-0). Tennessee Tech's Lori Bayless pitched 6.2 flawless innings before giving up her only hit of the day to Hazelwood with two outs in the bottom of the seventh. Vandergriff gave up nine hits in her seven innings of work, allowing four earned runs and struck out four. East Tennessee State returns to play Sunday afternoon against Alabama-Birmingham at 1 p.m. and host South Carolina at 5 p.m.