MEMPHIS, Tenn. – No. 2 Valdosta State broke open a tight game with five runs in the top of the seventh for a 9-2 victory in the nightcap of a doubleheader at Christian Brothers Saturday.  VSU, who ran its winning streak to 20 games, won the opener 15-0 in five innings and then posted the 9-2 victory in the second game. 
 
VSU (31-3, 24-2 GSC) hit three more home runs in the nightcap, highlighted by a three-run blast from senior Lacey Crandall in the five-run seventh inning.  Freshman Taylor Macera capped her best doubleheader of her collegiate career, going 6 of 8 from the dish for the two games, tallied one double, hit her first career home run, scored four run and drove in six.  VSU hit .413 for the twin bill, with 26 hits, six doubles, four home runs and 22 RBI, while outscoring CBU 24-2.   The Buccaneers 7-28 (7-23 GSC) hit .217 for the doubleheader, going 10 of 46 from the dish with one double, two runs scored and two RBI.
 
In the nightcap after the Blazers went scoreless in the first inning, CBU's Ashley Dyer began the game with a single and moved to third on a stolen base and a groundout. Bree Brady singled up the middle, plating Dyer for 1-0 lead, snapping the Blazers' string of 37-straight scoreless innings.
 
VSU evened the score in the top of the second as Macera tallied her fourth hit of the doubleheader to that point with a single through the left side and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt.  Later, in the frame, sophomore Hunter Meadows doubled to right center, plating junior Baylee Everson for a 1-1 score.  Meadows finished the doubleheader 5 of 7 from the plate with two runs scored, one double and two RBI.
 
The Bucs put runners at the corners with one out in the bottom of the fourth on a hit batter and a single down the line for four hits to that point off VSU freshman starting pitcher Morgan Hill.   Memory Willingham, who hit the single, was called out for leaving early and M. Hill got a pop out to shortstop to end the threat.
 
Meadows singled to the pitcher in the top of the fifth and then scored on an RBI double from junior Nicole Pennington.  Senior Kiley Robb replaced Pennington at second with an RBI double for a 3-1 lead. 
 
In the bottom of the fifth, a leadoff walk, wild pitch, RBI double from Dyer and an error pulled CBU within 3-2 and Dyer at third with nobody out.  VSU replaced M. Hill with sophomore Samantha Richards, who pitched a shutout in the opener.  Richards proceeded to strikeout the side to get out of the jam without further damage.
 
Macera began the top of the sixth with her first collegiate home run – a shot to left center for a 4-2 lead for her second hit of the game and fifth of the doubleheader.  It was the 78^th home run hit by the Blazers this season and she became the ninth different player to hit a home run. 
 
The home run theme continued for the Blazers in the seventh as senior Logan Hill belted her 11^th home run of the season to begin the top of the seventh and a 5-2 lead.  Macera belted her third hit of the game for an RBI double to center field and Crandall belted her ninth home run – a three run shot for a 9-2 score.  VSU belted four home runs for the day giving it a national-best 80 for the season. 
 
Richards closed out the game in the bottom of the frame for a 2-0 series lead heading into tomorrow's finale scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
 
M. Hill improved to 7-1 with the victory, going four innings, allowing five hits, two earned runs, walked one and fanned two.  Richards earned her third save of the season, going the final three innings, allowing two hits, walked one and fanned six.  She pitched eight innings for the doubleheader, allowing five hits, walked four and fanned 13 as CBU hit .172 against her. 
 
Offensively, Macera was 3 for 4 in the nightcap, with two runs scored and two RBI, including her home run.  Crandall went 2 for 3 with a run scored and three RBI on her home run, while Meadows was 3 for 3 with a run scored and one RBI.  Eight different Blazers had hits in the game and five different players had multi-hit games.