CARROLLTON, Ga. – The Valdosta State softball team overcame a late deficit for an extra inning 4-3 victory in game one, before dropping game two 9-6 in a doubleheader split against the West Georgia Wolves on Saturday in Carrollton, Ga. at University Field.
 
With Randi Phillips aboard in the second inning, Summer Wallace struck first for the Wolves (31-21, 14-15 GSC) after a failed sacrifice bunt attempt forced her to swing away at the plate. The end result was a favorable one for Wallace, who connected for her seventh home run of the season and put UWG on top 2-0.
 
Two innings later, pitcher Kathryn Woody helped her cause with an RBI single through the middle. Phillips, who led off the inning with her second walk of the contest, scored on the base hit and gave VSU a big hill to climb in the final three innings.
 
VSU (34-10-2, 20-9-1 GSC) began their push for a comeback in inning number six, when Brandy Morgan delivered an RBI single to score Heather Robinson, who reached on a walk and moved into scoring position after Chelsea Canara hit into a double play at third base.
 
With their backs against the wall, the Blazers started a seventh inning rally with the help of a leadoff single by Lauren Shaw. Danielle Patterson followed with a bunt single, which chased Woody from the game. Katie Shultes came on for the Wolves in relief, and proceeded to strike out Jamie Phillips before loading the bases with a walk to Kiley Rusen. The Blazers cut the deficit to 3-2 with a fielder's choice RBI grounder off the bat of Hayley Cruthers, and Robinson teamed up with Canara for back to back walks to push one additional run across and tie the game at 3-3.
 
Neither team struck again until the ninth, when Phillips led off with a walk, stole second base, and came in to score the winning run on a Cruthers single to left field.
 
Calhoun picked up the victory in the game to improve to 23-4 on the season, while Shultes suffered the extra-inning loss to fall to 10-6.
 
In the second game, UWG applied early pressure with a pair of first inning runs, but VSU fired back in the second when Taylor Hartenbach followed a Morgan double with an RBI triple into the right field corner.
 
In the third, Rusen hit a one-hopper off the right center field wall with one out and advanced on a Cruthers groundout. With two away, Robinson then delivered a clutch game-tying single to right field to tie the contest up at 2-2.
 
West Georgia reclaimed the lead moments later after Katie Spinks sparked a third-inning rally for the Wolves with a leadoff single, before Stowers and Phillips used two singles to precede a Blazer miscue on a ground ball to short. The three hits, combined with the error, allowed UWG to take a 4-2 advantage into the fourth inning.
 
West Georgia's lead didn't last long, however, as two singles and an error loaded the bases for Rusen, who blasted her 17^th homer of the year. The grand slam gave VSU a 6-4 lead, but in the fifth inning, West Georgia took the lead back for good with a five-run frame that included five hits for the Wolves and one error by the Blazers.
 
Huntyre Elling allowed seven runs to cross during her 4.0 innings of work, but only four of those runs were earned. VSU's four errors proved to be costly, resulting in five unearned runs for the Wolves and a loss for Elling, who fell to 10-6 on the year.
 
With the game one victory, Valdosta State clinched one of six spots in the GSC Tournament, scheduled to take place in two weeks at the home of the league's top-seeded team.
 
The Blazers and the Wolves will square off for the series finale on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. in Carrollton, Ga.