What you need to know:
* Georgia State (28-25, 11-10 SBC) won the series against UL Monroe with a sweep of the doubleheader Sunday.
* GSU won 6-2 in Game 1 and 7-3 in Game 2. The Game 1 win was the 1,000 in school history and 200th for head coach Roger Kincaid.
* GSU closes the regular season with a three-game series at home this weekend, hosting rival Georgia Southern.
MONROE, La. – Georgia State swept UL Monroe in a doubleheader Sunday to win the series at Monroe. The 6-2 win in Game 1 was the 1,000th win for Georgia State and the 200th for head coach Roger Kincaid.
Game 1 | GSU 6, ULM 2
Georgia State pulled ahead early in the first game of the doubleheader, scoring all six runs in the first three innings to give starter Katie Worley a nice cushion.
With the bases loaded in the first, Arden Jobe hit a bouncer back to the pitcher. The pitcher threw home to get the force out, but overthrew the catcher and two Panthers crossed the plate. Morgan Brown provided the third run with an RBI-single through the right side that scored Mandy Blackwell.
Blackwell came back up in the second inning and singled through the left side to bring home Taylor Anderson and make it a 4-0 game in favor of GSU. In the third, Taylor Bradley singled home Brown and then Anderson hit a double over the left fielder's head to send Bradley home and give the Panthers a six-run advantage.
Six runs would be plenty for Worley, who held UL Monroe to just two runs on four hits through 6.1 innings. Amanda Chance came on in relief with one out in the seventh and finished the deal with some help from her defense. With two outs and two on, the ULM batter sent a deep fly ball to center field, but Brown went full extension towards the wall and made the diving catch to end the game.
The win marked both GSU's 1,000 program win and head coach Roger Kincaid's 200th win as coach of the Panthers. Georgia State is just the 36th NCAA Division I program to reach the milestone.
Game 2 | GSU 7, ULM 1
In the second feature of the day, ULM jumped out to a 1-0 lead with two hits in the bottom of the first. That would be all, however, as Amanda Chance got the start and held the Warhawks to three runs on six hits through 5.1 innings.
GSU tied the game in the second with a Taylor Anderson RBI-single and then took a 4-1 lead with a bases-loaded triple off the bat of Brenna Skalski. Remington Hasty added a run on an RBI-single in the third and the Panthers went up 7-1 in the fourth with a two-run home run by Ivie Drake. Drake's 14th homer of the season pulls her within two of tying Callie Alford's record of 38 career long balls.
ULM mounted a rally in the bottom of the sixth, scoring a run on an RBI-single up the middle with no outs. The Warhawks then loaded the bases with one out and scored on a hit-by-pitch to pull within four. Annie Davis came in to pitch with the bases full and shut the door on the ULM rally.
Davis stayed in to pitch the seventh and held the Warhawks off the board to secure the 7-3 win.
With the doubleheader sweep, GSU improves to 28-25 (11-10 SBC) while UL Monroe falls to 23-29 (7-14 SBC).
Up next for the Panthers is the final series of the regular season. Georgia State hosts rival Georgia Southern for three games at the Bob Heck Softball Complex beginning Friday at 5 p.m. and concluding with a doubleheader at 1 and 3 p.m. Saturday. Georgia State will honors its three seniors following the doubleheader on Saturday.
Follow along with Georgia State on Twitter (@GSU_Softball) for the latest news.
