April 15, 2010
Final Stats
PETERSBURG, VA - Fayetteville State split its two games on Day 1 of the CIAA Softball Tournament. The Broncos (16-20) dropped their first game, 2-1, to Virginia State before rebounding with a convincing 9-1 victory over Elizabeth City State.
FSU, who is now in the loser's bracket of the double-elimination tournament, will play the loser of the Chowan-VSU game on Friday at 10 a.m.
First baseman April Branch (Pender, NC) and right fielder Tracey Brighter (Spring Lake, NC) had two each hits in the loss to the Trojans. Branch scored the Broncos' only run in the top of the fourth inning on a RBI fielder's choice by freshman Ashley Wlezen (Spring Lake, NC).
Sophomore pitcher Misty Huber took the loss for FSU, despite allowing only one earned run and five hits in six innings pitched.
In the second game, FSU scored four first-inning and five fifth-inning runs to easily top ECSU 9-1. Brighter, freshman Rita Diaz (Fayetteville, NC) and outfielder LaTonia Gatling (Suffolk, VA) had two hits apiece for the Broncos.
Branch smacked a two-RBI double to left field in the first inning, scoring Gatling and infielder Demarius Pankey (Laurinburg, NC). The next batter, Brighter, grounded out to third scoring Huber and Diaz singled to left field scoring Branch to FSU a 4-0 lead.
Brighter, an All-CIAA first-team selection, pitched for FSU allowing one earned run and striking out 11 Vikings batters.
The first four batters in the FSU lineup (Gatling, Pankey, Huber and Branch) scored eight runs. Doniecia Ebron (Belhaven, NC) had a hit and a RBI.
