LIVINGSTON, Ala.- The Valdosta State softball team put on an offensive spectacle on Sunday afternoon, sweeping No. 13 West Alabama in a Gulf South Conference doubleheader behind 25 hits and 12 home runs. VSU took the first game of the afternoon, 11-9, before claiming the second in five innings, 14-3. With the doubleheader victory, the Blazers took yet another GSC series, racking up their fourth of the season.
 
Overall, VSU improved to 16-10 on the year while moving up to 9-3 in GSC play while UWA fell to 14-9 overall with a 5-7 mark in conference play.
 
Game #1: Valdosta State 11, #13 West Alabama 9
 
In the first game of the afternoon, Valdosta State managed to get runners on base early in the top of the first. Junior Brandie Seber and junior Carly Bogart singled before senior Aniston Gano took a walk to give the Blazers a swift bases-loaded opportunity. With two outs, senior Katie Proctor stepped up to the plate and crushed a go-ahead grand slam to put the Blazers up in a flash, 4-0.
 
West Alabama ended up striking back in the bottom of the second stringing together five hits including three homers as well as a double to score five runs and take the lead, 5-4. However, the Blazers responded in spectacular fashion as VSU got a runner on to kick off the third inning just before junior Abby Sulte blasted her 16th home run of the year on a two-run, go-ahead shot to take back the lead, 6-5. Gano then got in on the action, launching her 10th homer of the year on a solo shot to extend the Valdosta State lead to two, 7-5.
 
The Tigers scored another run on Blazer miscues in the bottom of the third to make the contest a one-run game, 7-6. However, VSU answered right back as senior Morgan Hill blasted a solo home run to right field to build the Valdosta State lead back up to two by the middle of the fourth, 8-6.
 
Things remained quiet for both squads offensively until the seventh inning. VSU decided to mount a rally in the top of the frame as Gano cranked her second home run of the game on a two-run bomb to put the Blazers in double-digits, 10-6. Scoring in the inning was not quite done just yet as sophomore Jasmin Stewart smashed her second home run of the weekend on a solo homer to build the VSU lead to 11-6.
 
West Alabama did not go down without a fight, attempting to mount a comeback in the bottom of the seventh. The Tigers tacked on two runs on a pair of RBI doubles to bring the score within two, 11-9. Luckily, the Blazer defense was able to batten down the hatches and get out of the inning to score the afternoon victory, 11-9.
 
Graduate student Nadia Zenteno (4-5) went the distance for Valdosta State, recording all but one out while going 6.2 innings. Zenteno allowed nine hits for nine runs (eight earned) while walking two and fanning seven.
 
Collectively, the Blazers racked up 10 hits with a season record-tying six home runs in the contest. Proctor, Sulte, Hill and Stewart each tallied a home run in the game while Gano racked up two. Katie Proctor's first inning heroics were an early indication of the Blazer's excellent showing at the plate as her grand slam marked VSU's second of the season and Proctor's first of the year, earning her Guardian Bank Player of the Game honors.
 
Game #2: Valdosta State 14, #13 West Alabama 3 (5 Innings)

The Blazers kicked off the second game of the afternoon with a bang as Abby Sulte smashed her second home run of the day on a three-run shot to put Valdosta State up 3-0 in the top of the first. The VSU lead grew to 4-0 in the blink of an eye as Katie Proctor crushed her second homer of the afternoon on a solo shot to cap off an explosive inning.
 
West Alabama ended up adding a run in the bottom of the second on a Blazer fielding error to cut the VSU lead to three, 4-1. VSU answered right back as Jasmin Stewart delivered an RBI single to build the lead back to four in the top of the third, 5-1.

The Blazer bats continued to show what they are made of in the top of the fourth as lead-off, back-to-back singles from Sulte and Gano led to a three-run bomb from sophomore Saylor McNearney, boosting Valdosta State up to a seven run lead, 8-1.
 
Valdosta State went on to have a fiery showing at the plate in the top of the fifth as junior Carly Bogart shattered a three-run bomb at the start of the inning to put VSU up 11-1. Abby Sulte continued her dominant stretch at the dish as she launched her third home run of the afternoon on a solo shot to give VSU the 12-1 edge. Morgan Hill then hit a triple before McNearney demolished her second home run of the game to boost Valdosta State to a thirteen-run cushion, 14-1 by the end of the frame.
 
West Alabama was held to just two more runs in the bottom of the fifth as Valdosta State prevailed in the series rubber match behind the run rule, 14-3 in five innings.
 
Freshman Toree Wofford (6-1) went all five innings for the Blazers, marking her fifth complete game of the year. She allowed seven hits for three runs while striking out three and walking just one.
 
The Blazers collectively delivered a season-high 15 hits in the contest including one triple and six home runs. Bogart and Proctor each recorded one home run in the game while Sulte and McNearney tallied two. Sulte had a near-perfect game at the plate, going four for four with three runs and four RBI with two home runs to earn Guardian Bank Player of the Game honors.

The Blazer softball team will now hit the road once again for a mid-week doubleheader against Columbus State set for Wednesday, Mar. 13 at 3 p.m. For more information on Valdosta State softball, visit vstateblazers.com and go to the softball schedule page.