East Tennessee State University’s softball team secured two victories on the second day of the ETSU Tournament, defeating Bowling Green 3-2 and Tennessee State 8-7 in Johnson City, Tennessee.
In the first game against Bowling Green, a sophomore infielder hit her first career home run and recorded her first RBIs with two runs. The senior catcher led the team with seven putouts and contributed one RBI from a single. A senior infielder added six putouts and one assist. Sophomore pitcher Muncy collected five strikeouts over four innings, facing 14 batters for season-highs in both categories. The team had 21 at-bats, producing three runs, two hits, three RBIs, and six assists among their 21 putouts.
Bowling Green scored an unearned run in the opening frame. ETSU responded with a sacrifice fly from Lutu to bring Taylor home. The score remained tied until the bottom of the fourth when Moore’s home run brought Martens and herself across home plate, giving ETSU a two-run lead. Barnes started as pitcher for three innings before Muncy took over for the final four innings. Muncy allowed only two hits and held Bowling Green scoreless through the seventh inning to secure a 3-2 win.
In the second game against Tennessee State, sophomore pitcher Boone earned her second win of the season by pitching 5.1 innings with three strikeouts and no walks, limiting TSU to two runs during that time. Lutu and a freshman infielder were key contributors on offense, each going 2-for-4 at bat with two runs scored. The sophomore catcher and junior second baseman each collected two RBIs for season-highs. Martens achieved a career-high 12 putouts during this game.
Porter reached a career-high with three assists and stole two bases—one leading directly to a run scored. Rieger, Pennington, and a freshman third baseman also tallied two assists each while managing additional infield plays.
Tennessee State took an early lead with two runs in the first inning and another in the second for a 3-0 advantage. ETSU answered back in their half of the second inning with three runs thanks to walks, an error by Tennessee State, wild pitches, and singles. ETSU continued scoring over the next innings to build up a 6-3 lead; errors by Tennessee State resulted in unearned runs for ETSU during this stretch.
Both teams scored once in the fifth inning before ETSU extended its lead to 8-4 after Boone doubled to drive Lutu home in the sixth inning. Tennessee State rallied for three runs at the top of the seventh but ultimately fell short as ETSU held on for an 8-7 victory.
The Bucs are scheduled to continue tournament play on Sunday, February 22 at Betty Basler Field.
