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STATESBORO, Ga. – The Elon University softball team could not recover from a five-run fifth inning by the top-seeded Chattanooga Lady Mocs on Thursday afternoon, May 12, at Eagle Field, as the fifth-seeded Phoenix fell, 7-1, in the second round of the 2011 Southern Conference Softball Tournament.

Elon drops to 30-22 with the setback and will now face second-seeded Appalachian State tomorrow at 10 a.m. in the consolation bracket. Chattanooga improves to 40-12 with the win and will face the winner of UNCG and Samford tomorrow.

Rookie Carleigh Nester produced Elon’s only run of the game to extend her hitting streak to nine games, as the Kernersville, N.C. native belted a solo home run in the bottom of fourth inning, her fifth of the season.

The Elon offense registered two hits off Chattanooga starting pitcher Nikki Waters in the loss. Waters went all seven innings and gave up just one run on two hits to earn the win and improve her record to 10-4.

#Erin O’Shea# took the loss for the Phoenix to fall to 12-12 on the year after going four and one-thirds innings. O’Shea gave up five runs (two earned) on five hits and one walk. Lauren Taylor pitched the final two and two-thirds for Elon, giving up two runs (one earned) on three hits.

The Lady Mocs recorded the game’s first hit in the top of the third inning following a leadoff walk to Jessica Traxler, as Lauren Flores hit a bloop single into left field to put runners at first and second with no outs. Following another walk by O’Shea to Lyndsey Stiles to load the bases, the Lady Mocs took a 1-0 lead after Sara Poteat came up with a bloop single into center to put the Phoenix behind. But O’Shea battled through the heart of the Lady Mocs’ order to limit the damage and keep it a one-run game, striking out SoCon Player of the Year Michelle Fuzzard and getting a pair of pop outs to end the inning.

Nester helped the Phoenix tie the game in the bottom of the fourth after sending Nikki Waters’ first pitch over the left field fence to record Elon’s first hit and tie the game at one apiece.  

The Lady Mocs put two on with no outs in the top of the fifth after Stiles and Poteat reached base via hit and error. UTC took a two-run edge on the next at-bat after Fuzzard came through with a two-run double to the gap in left center to make it a 3-1 game. Following a pitching change that brought in Taylor for O’Shea, the Lady Mocs tacked on three more runs after a run scored on an RBI groundout and a two-run homer to left by Della Harrison put Elon down, 6-1.  

UTC capitalized on an Elon failed pickoff attempt in the top of the sixth to take a 7-1 advantage after a sacrifice fly to right scored Stiles from third on a play at the plate, as Stiles just managed to beat out Hannah Shelton’s throw to home from right field after sliding under Kaitlyn Piazzolla’s tag.

Jackie Gonzalez put Elon in scoring position for the first time of the game in the bottom of the sixth after reaching on an error and stealing second base with two outs. But Waters managed to get out of the inning and keep UTC’s six-run lead intact.

Elon recorded its second hit of the game in the bottom of the seventh after Emerald Graham legged out an infield single to second base with one out. Pinch runner Camille Hill would eventually reach second base in the inning to give the Phoenix its second runner in scoring position of the game, but UTC’s Waters managed to induce a groundout from Pam DelPizzo to end the game.

-- ELON --