Gamecocks continue nonconference success
The South Carolina softball team continued its string of success against nonconference opponents this season with a doubleheader sweep of Longwood on Saturday.
Carolina took the first game 7-2 and stormed to a 12-5 win in the final game to improve to 22-16, 2-9 SEC on the season.
With the win last week at Winthrop, the Gamecocks have now won three in a row overall, and own a 20-7 nonconference record this season.
For head coach Beverly Smith, it’s the same approach to every game and every win counts the same.
“As I tell our team all the time, it doesn’t matter if it’s conference or nonconference, they are all wins,” Smith said. “The approach will remain the same.”
In the first game, something happened that has been unusual for the Gamecocks this season; they did not walk a batter thanks to redshirt junior pitcher Audrey Broyles. Broyles went the distance, pitching seven innings without giving up a walk or an earned run, and struck out seven.
Broyles threw 78 strikes in 110 pitches. The other pitchers on the USC staff should take notes from Broyles, as she used the umpire’s wide strike zone to her favor.
“It came down to just knowing the umpire’s strike zone,” Broyles said. “I definitely took advantage of the strike zone today. When their batters didn’t get used to it, I just kept hitting those corners, knowing that they weren’t going to swing at it.”
Highlights of the first game included senior outfielder Kaitlin Westfall going 2-2 with a walk, a two-run homer and three runs, and junior shortstop Samie Garcia picked up a hit and two RBIs.
Their contributions were more than enough, as Longwood didn’t score its two runs until the final innings, when the game was already in hand.
The second game saw a couple of breakout innings for the Gamecocks. After digging itself out of a three-run hole due to an error by Westfall, USC exploded for seven runs in the third and five runs in the fourth to put the game out of reach.
Westfall redeemed herself of the two-run error made in the top half of the third by hitting a line-drive grand slam over the left field fence to break a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the inning.
“I was thinking that I had to make up for the error I made in left field,” Westfall said. “I just waited patiently and put a good swing on a good pitch and just hit it out.”
Westfall added an RBI single later in the game to give her five in the game and seven on the day. It was a memorable day for the leftfielder, who went into the day with 20 RBIs, as it was the first time she had ever hit two home runs in one day. The grand slam was also a first for Westfall.
Westfall said that she hopes her and her team can use what happened Saturday for the upcoming slew of SEC games on the road.
“We’re going to use this (momentum) and keep it rolling into next weekend at Kentucky,” Westfall said.
South Carolina will play its next eight games on the road, starting with three at Kentucky this weekend. After that, USC plays two at Georgia and then three in Tuscaloosa against Alabama.
Smith will try to get the team to continue to cut down on the walks, as problems resurfaced in the second game. Freshman pitchers Kristen Struett and Katelyn Howser combined to walk seven batters.
“This week is all about getting ready to play Kentucky,” Smith said. “They are a very good opponent. We just need to keep that confidence we have at the plate and for our pitchers, we just need to keep working ahead in the count like they did today.”