Sports

Softball wins big against APSU, Belmont

The Tech softball team went 3-2 this past week with wins over conference rivals Belmont University and Austin Peay State University.  

The Golden Eagles hosted the Bruins last weekend and played a make-up doubleheader against the Governors Tuesday.
Senior pitcher Claudia Harke got the win Sunday, which allowed Tech to take the series after a loss and a win the previous day.
“We bounced back in  its second game and really hit the ball well and played smart defense,” Harke said. “We came back as a completely different team.”
Belmont was successful in their rally against Tech in the first game winning 4-1, but the Golden Eagles held down a comeback from the newest members of the conference 3-2 in the second game.  

Tech decided the series Sunday with a 7-4 victory over Belmont, shutting down the Bruins’ offense from scoring another run after the second inning.
Junior centerfielder Christian Gibbs helped spark the Golden Eagle hitting after being down 4-0 early in the game.
“We knew we needed to forget about the runs scored and just focus on own hitting and make every at-bat count,” Gibbs said.
The team rallied in the bottom of the second inning, scoring four runs and tying the game. The scoring continued for the Golden Eagles through the third with two more runs and capped the game off with another run in the sixth.
The team returned to the field Tuesday with make-up games against Austin Peay. The Golden Eagles split the doubleheader with a loss in the first game 7-4 and a shutout win in the second game 7-0.  

“I think it helped having mid-week games because we were able to play gamelike situations that haven’t come up in the past,” Gibbs said.
Tech will continue Ohio Valley Conference action this upcoming weekend. The Golden Eagles will take on the top two teams in the conference. Saturday, the Purple and Gold face Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, followed by a trip to Charleston, Ill. to take on the top seed in the West, Eastern Illinois University.
“We need to get wins this weekend and focus on really coming together especially before the tournament,” Gibbs said. “This weekend is going to be crucial.”
Both Harke and Gibbs expressed how important it’s going to be for the Golden Eagles to become closer as a team.
“We want to make every at-bat count and not give up errors on defense,” Harke said. “With being on the road we become closer as a team, so hopefully that can transfer over to the games.”