COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – A pair of pitching gems were the story on Tuesday when Jacksonville State and Tennessee Tech split a doubleheader behind a two-hitter from Faith Sims and a no-hitter from Alyssa Arden.
 
Sims shut down the Golden Eagles (16-18, 6-6 Ohio Valley Conference) in a 7-0 win in the opener before Arden's no-no handed the Gamecocks (25-11, 9-3 OVC) a 2-0 defeat in the nightcap.
 
Sims (16-3) got plenty of run support in the first game and needed very little. The senior from Cordova, Ala., tossed her seventh shutout and her 15th complete game in 20 starts. This gem saw her limit the Golden Eagles to just two hits and retire the last 13 batters she faced. She allowed just two baserunners over the final six innings after escaping a bases loaded jam in the first.
 
Seven different JSU batters scattered its eight hits, with senior Hayley Sims picking up two of them in three at bats. She also had one of three doubles by JSU batters, with senior Lex Hull and freshman Karsen Mosley recording the others.
 
Freshman Sidney Wagnon, who entered the game as a reserve after leadoff batter Hannahstaysia Weaver had to exit the game in the first inning, led the team with two RBI in the win.
 
After two scoreless frames, the Gamecocks got on the board twice in the third on an RBI grounder from Wagnon, who later scored on a wild pitch. A throwing error and wild pitch allowed two more to score in the fourth, and a Kirsten Titus RBI single in the fifth made it a 5-0 JSU lead.
 
Hayley Sims drove in one in the sixth, right before a Wagnon sac fly put the seventh and final run on the board for JSU.
 
Haeli Bryson (3-6) suffered the loss after allowing five runs on four hits and a walk in 4 and 1/3 innings of work.
 
The second game was Arden's turn to even the series. She struck out eight and walked three in her seven hitless innings of work, improving to 10-7 on the season. She bested JSU starter Nicole Rodriguez (5-4), who allowed two runs on six hits in her five innings in the circle. 
 
Two of those hits were the costly ones, with Raegan Sparks and Sydney Love-Baker connecting on solo homers to lead TTU's offensive attack.
 
The Gamecocks continue what is a six-game road swing through the state of Tennessee on Friday, when they play a doubleheader at Belmont in Nashville. The first game is scheduled to start at 3 ;30 p.m. JSU will wrap up the trip on Sunday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Tennessee State.