JACKSONVILLE – It took an inning to get going, but the Jax State softball team built a 7-0 advantage over Alabama State on Wednesday night before allowing a couple of late runs in the 7-2 victory.
 
The Gamecocks (15-21) won their third-straight game after finishing the previous weekend with consecutive road wins to close out the UTEP series. The victory returned the favor to the visiting Hornets (17-20) who won the first meeting of the season in Montgomery.
 
Junior starter Sarah Currie cruised to her third win on the year behind a career-high 10 strikeouts. She allowed just three hits and neither of the two late runs were earned against her as defensive errors allowed the runners to reach base. Behind her 10 K's she forced seven flyouts and four additional groundouts.
 
The Gamecocks record nine hits for the night as they racked up multiple runs in three consecutive frames. Makalyn Kyser struck first with a 2-RBI double in the second after Jax State loaded the bases with Megan Rasmussen, Kenzie Nicholson and Morgan Nowakowski. Nowakowski would follow up with her own 2-RBI double the next inning, and then scored on Linley Tubbs' shot to left field. In the fourth, Ella Pate came home on an Emma Jones-Hubbard groundout before Rasmussen brought Ashley Phillips home on a sacrifice fly to left to stake Jax State to a 7-0 lead.
 
Some miscues in the infield for Jax State gave ASU a spark to fight back for a pair of runs, but Currie shut the door with back-to-back strikeouts to end the night in the seventh.
 
The Gamecocks return to Conference USA play the weekend hosting New Mexico State for a three-game series beginning on Friday at Jana McGinnis Field.