JSU vs. USA FINAL STATS
JSU vs. NSU FINAL STATS

MOBILE – The Jacksonville State softball team turned to the circle again on Saturday, when it picked up a pair of wins in the second day of the South Alabama Jaguar Invitational.

The Gamecocks (3-0) claimed a 6-2 win over host South Alabama early in the day before handing Northwestern State a 2-1 defeat in the nightcap, setting up a showdown with No. 2 Alabama on Sunday morning.

In the day's first game, senior Karla Pittman, making her first appearance since 2007 after missing last year with a knee injury, went the distance and limited the Jaguars (1-1) to just two hits in the win. In their evening win over the Demons (0-3), senior Melissa Dowling struck out eight in six innings of work to improve JSU to 3-0 for the first time since the 2005 season.

Senior Allie Barker was 4-for-7 on the day, while freshman Kaycee Crow drove in a pair of runs to lead the JSU offense, which has generated just enough offense to compliment what has been a stellar pitching effort over the season's first three games.

In the early game, South Alabama jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the fourth on a Tara Donaldson single, but the Gamecocks took control of the game with a four-run fourth. They jumped to a 2-1 lead on a two-run error and then used an RBI double from senior Jackie Jarman and an RBI single by senior Courtney Underwood to build a 4-1 advantage.

JSU scored two more in the fifth on a two-run double from Crow, and USA would only be able to muster up one more the rest of the way.

Pittman (1-0) allowed a pair of earned runs on just two hits and five walks. She struck out four. Meghan Harbuck (0-1) suffered the loss in the circle after allowing four unearned runs on five hits in three and two-thirds innings.

In the last game of the day, the Gamecocks got a run in the home half of the second on a ground ball from junior Hillary Downs that scored Allie Barker, who led off the inning with a triple, from third. Barker scored their other run in the fourth on an RBI ground out from senior Kayla Collins, giving JSU a 2-0 advantage.

The Demons got one back in the sixth, but couldn't even the game back up.

Dowling (1-0) walked four a fanned eight in the first six innings, allowing a run on six hits. Sophomore Ashley Eliasson pitched a scoreless seventh inning to record her first save of the season.