MONROE, La. – Jacksonville State displayed some power on the first day of the 2022 season on Friday, belting six home runs in a doubleheader split with Southern and SIUE at the ULM Best on the Bayou Tournament.
The Gamecocks (1-1) hit four homers in an 11-0 rout of Southern to start the day and then hit two more in a 4-2 loss to the Cougars in the second game. The four long balls against the Jaguars were one shy of the school record and were the most in a game by a JSU team since 2019.
Senior
Karsen Mosley and sophomore
Lindsey Richardson each homered in both games of the twinbill, with each hitting three-run home runs in the first game and solo shots in the second. Mosley drove in five runs on the day, thanks to a sac fly that also came against Southern.
In the circle, senior
Lexi Androlevich shined in her first appearance of the 2022 campaign, throwing a one-hit shutout of Southern in the first game of the day. The Lake Butler, Fla., native struck out seven batters and took a no-hitter into the fifth before Alana Mark's grounder found a hole in the right side of the infield for the first hit against Androlevich (1-0).
JSU gave her at least one run of support in every inning, with Mosley getting the scoring started with her three-run homer to center in the first inning. Senior
Lizzy VanManen added a solo shot in the second and
Brantly Bonds and Mosley each drove in runs in the third to make it a 6-0 lead.
Richardson hit her first career homer in the fourth, a three-run shot to right, while senior
Addie Robinson's first career homer was a two-run blast in the fifth that accounted for all of JSU's runs.
Paytin Mercado (0-1) suffered the loss in the game for Southern, allowing four runs on three hits and two walks in less than two innings in the circle. Raquel Latta surrendered seven runs on six hits and a walk in the final three innings of the game.
In the second game of the day, the Cougars used a three-run third to pull ahead and JSU couldn't claw its way back. A fielding error put two runners on and then a pop up lost in the sun allowed the first two runs to score and extended the inning to let the third run come across.
JSU got a solo homer from Mosley in the first and then Richardson's solo homer in the sixth pulled the Gamecocks within two runs at 4-2.
Freshman
Kat Carter (0-1) suffered a tough-luck loss in her collegiate debut, allowing just two earned runs in six innings of work. She struck out four in her first outing.
Sydney Baalman (1-0) earned the win after limiting JSU to two runs on four hits in seven frames. She struck out four and walked four.
The Gamecocks will continue play in the Best on the Bayou Tournament on Saturday, when they face defending Southland Conference champion Stephen F. Austin at 12:30 p.m.
