The No. 19 South Carolina softball team (19-0) picked up a series sweep against the No. 8 Duke Blue Devils (14-6) over the weekend, moving the Gamecocks to a perfect 19-0 under first-year head coach Ashley Chastain Woodard.
The Gamecocks exploded offensively on Friday night en route to a 14-7 victory, followed by a close 4-2 win on Saturday afternoon. South Carolina finished the weekend with another hot offensive day, beating the Blue Devils 12-7 on Sunday afternoon.
Here's a recap of the weekend games:
Two big innings seal the series opener win
The Gamecocks put up 14 runs against Duke in the series opener. All of those runs came in the third and seventh innings.
South Carolina had 10 batters come to the plate in the third inning, plating 6 runs on five hits. With freshman outfielder Nia McKnight on first base, redshirt junior infielder Quincee Lilio hit a double down the right field line, putting two runners in scoring position with sophomore infielder Karley Shelton up to bat. McKnight scored on a wild-pitch to open the scoring for South Carolina, and Shelton walked.
Junior infielder Arianna Rodi broke the game open, jumping on the second pitch she saw and sending it over the right field fence to make the score 4-1. The Gamecocks weren't done in the third, however, as the next three batters loaded the bases for sixth-year outfielder Abigail Knight. Knight drove a single up the middle, scoring in senior infielders Ella Chancey and Brooke Blankenship to end the big inning.
The Gamecocks entered the seventh inning leading 6-4 after a mild push from the Blue Devils.
South Carolina scored 8 runs in the seventh inning while 11 Gamecocks went up to the plate. The Gamecocks got six hits in the inning, while Rodi and Blankenship also walked.
Junior catcher Lexi Winters extended the lead with the bases loaded, bringing in Shelton on an RBI single. It was Knight who broke open the scoring some more after Winters, clearing the bases on an RBI single. Knight advanced to third on the play after a pair of Duke errors. Redshirt junior Natalie Heath singled Knight home in the next at bat.
Two batters later, it was Lilio who doubled again to put two runners in scoring position for Shelton. Shelton unloaded her third home run of the season to put the Gamecocks up 14-4 in the top of the seventh. Shelton finished her day with two hits and 3 runs-batted-in.
Duke put up 3 runs in the final frame to give South Carolina the 14-7 win. 11 of the 13 Gamecock base hits came in the third and seventh innings.
Dual pitchers, Gamecock bats prove to be clutch
In a much lower scoring affair on Saturday afternoon, the Gamecocks saw timely hitting in the seventh inning to win the series.
South Carolina jumped out to an early lead in the first inning, as Rodi hit her second home run of the series, bringing in Lilio for a 2-0 Gamecocks lead. The home run was Rodi's seventh of the season.
Junior pitcher Jori Heard got the start for the Gamecocks. Heard gave up 1 run on two hits after the first three innings of work. Duke senior infielder Ana Gold bested Heard in the bottom of the third, hitting a solo home run to cut the South Carolina lead in half.
Sixth-year pitcher Sam Gress came in relief for Heard to start the fourth inning, holding down the fort for the next few innings. Gress pitched two consecutive scoreless frames before allowing a few baserunners in the sixth inning. Heard came back in for Gress, inheriting those baserunners. Duke junior infielder KK Mathis singled to tie the game 2-2, but Heard got out of the inning with no more damage.
The tying run was credited to Gress, who allowed two hits and 1 run in 2 2/3 innings. Gress struck out four batters and allowed three walks.
Senior outfielder Emily Vinson walked to begin the seventh inning for the Gamecocks, followed by a single from Lilio, her third hit of the day. Shelton had the game-winning base hit, singling to centerfield to bring home Vinson. Rodi brought home Lilio with a sacrifice fly to give South Carolina an insurance run.
Heard closed out the game in the seventh to give South Carolina the series win. Heard got the win, pitching 4 1/3 innings, allowing 1 run on five hits.
Big innings dictate series sweep for Gamecocks
South Carolina was forced to play from behind early in Sunday's game, as sophomore pitcher Nealy Lamb was pulled after just one inning where she allowed 4 runs on five hits. Gold hit her second home run of the series in the first inning, while sophomore infielder Linh Le brought in two more Blue Devils with a single later in the inning.
The Gamecocks responded in a big way after the first, scoring 8 runs in the following two innings. Back-to-back doubles from Chancey and Blankenship put the Gamecocks on the board in the second, and Heath smoked her first home run of the season, a two-run shot, to cut the Duke lead to 4-3.
The RBI double from Blankenship was her 100th career collegiate base hit. 88 of her career base hits have come with South Carolina.
A five-run third inning gave South Carolina some more breathing room. With a runner on first, Rodi smoked her eighth homer of the season to give the Gamecocks a 5-4 lead. Rodi has hit a home run in four consecutive games, dating back to South Carolina's win at Charlotte on Feb. 25.
Doubles from Chancey and Winters brought another run home, but the score widened some more after a two-run home run from Knight, her first of the season, to cap off the big inning.
Duke responded in the fourth inning off the bat of redshirt sophomore catcher Kiari Rodriguez, smoking a three-run home run against Gress in as relief for Lamb, cutting the Gamecocks lead to 8-7.
The fifth and sixth innings were scoreless on both fronts, but the Gamecocks broke away in the seventh, scoring 4 more runs. An RBI single from Rodi and sacrifice flys from Chancey and Blankenship brought the score to 11-7, but the exclamation mark came from Winters, a solo home run.
Heard closed out the game to give South Carolina the series sweep, the first series win of the season for the undefeated Gamecocks, and its first victories against a ranked opponent.
What's next?
Check out the South Carolina softball team (19-0) in action against the Youngstown State Penguins (2-13) on Wednesday, March 5 at Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field. First pitch is at 6 p.m. on SEC Network+.