Makaleigh Dooley Leads Tampa To Saturday Sweep
Dooley earned both wins on the weekend to get the team going
TAMPA, Fla. – The University of Tampa softball team opened the 2018 season at home against the Warner University Royals in a Saturday afternoon doubleheader. The Spartans used a five-run sixth inning to break the game open after the Royals tied it in the top of the inning at 1-1 on the way to a season-opening 6-1 win. The team followed that up with a comeback win in the second game 4-2 to complete the sweep.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP (GAME ONE):
Final: Tampa 6 (W: Makaleigh Dooley 1-0), Warner 1 (L: Futch 0-1)
Records: Spartans (1-0), Royals (0-1)
Location: Naimoli Family Stadium | Tampa, Fla.
All-time Series: Tampa leads in the all-time series 5-0 vs Warner
Follow Us: @TampaSpartans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Vimeo
HOW IT HAPPENED:
2nd Inning: Erica Matich drove in the first run of the season for UT as she hit a single to left-center field to score Shelby Press who had hit a triple to right field with one out on the board.
6th Inning: After WU had tied the game in the top of the inning, the bats came to life for the Spartans in the bottom half. Press reached base with a one-out single and stole second base with two outs. Matich again drove in Press this time with a double to left field. Sahrina Cortes drove in Matich in the next at-bat as she hit a single down the right-field line Cristina Clauberg kept the inning going as she put two players on base with a single to left field. Dooley helped out her own cause as she drove both runs in with a double to center field. Mackenzie Allen made her Spartan debut replacing Dooley as a pinch runner and scored on a Corynn Miner triple to right field to complete the scoring in the game.
INSIDE THE STATS:
- Dooley pitched the complete game tallying 85 pitches in total with 66 being called strikes as she faced 25 batters.
- Press had a perfect day at the plate as she went 3 for 3 with one triple and she also scored two runs.
- Matich and Dooley combined for four RBI with each of them recording two.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- For the second consecutive year, the Spartans opened the season with a win.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP (GAME TWO):
Final: Tampa 4 (W: Dooley 2-0), Warner 2 (L: Lewis 0-1)
Records: Spartans (2-0), Royals (0-2)
Location: Naimoli Family Stadium | Tampa, Fla.
All-time Series: Tampa leads in the all-time series 6-0 vs Warner
Follow Us: @TampaSpartans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Vimeo
HOW IT HAPPENED:
1st inning: After Warner took no time in opening the scoring in the top half of the inning, Tampa responded in the bottom half. Cortes hit a double to left-center field in the first at-bat and advanced to third on an infield play. Dooley hit a sacrifice fly to center field that drew a diving catch from the defense and allowed Cortes to tie the game.
4th Inning: Trailing the Royals 2-1, Clauberg drew a walk to open the half inning and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Dooley. Breanna Taphouse came in at second as a pinch runner and scored with two outs on the board as Maddie Farrell doubled to left field to tie the game up once again.
6th Inning: With the game tied, a repeat of game one was on hand as the offense picked up for the Spartans. This time, UT used two runs to jump ahead on the scoreboard. Clauberg singled to center field and moved to second on another sacrifice bunt by Dooley. Freshman Bailey Phillips stepped up to the plate with the game tied and sent a rocket to straight-center field that came up a couple of feet short of clearing the fence to break the tie. M. Farrell followed her up and added one more insurance run as a single to center field scored Phillips from third.
INSIDE THE STATS:
- Dooley came into the circle in relief of Miner and pitched the final two innings to earn the win as she gave up no hits and had no batters reach base including a three-pitch sixth inning.
- M. Farrell drove in a pair of runs as she went 2 for 3 at the plate.
UP NEXT:
The team will be back on the field on Thursday, February 8th as they welcome West Georgia to Tampa for an evening doubleheader starting at 6 p.m. in a regional matchup.
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