VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State softball team capped off a dominant weekend at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park on Sunday afternoon, defeating Delta State 12-1 to complete a three-game Gulf South Conference series sweep.
With the victory, the Blazers improved to 13-11 overall while the Lady Statesmen fell to 8-17 on the season.
Valdosta State's offense erupted early and often, scoring in three straight innings and finishing the afternoon with 12 runs on 11 hits while holding Delta State to just four hits in the contest.
After a scoreless opening inning, the Blazers broke through in the bottom of the second.
Alyssa Vallad sparked the rally with a double before Rachel Lee followed with an RBI double to bring home the first run of the game. Lee later scored on a wild pitch and
Annalise Buncy added an RBI double to extend the lead to 3-0.
Valdosta State added to its advantage in the third inning when
Carly Bogart singled ahead of a two-run home run from
Madison VanAllen to push the lead to 5-0. Rachel Lee followed later in the inning with a solo home run to left center, extending the margin to 6-0.
Delta State got on the board in the fourth inning when Carly Dunigan connected on a solo home run to left center to cut the deficit to 6-1.
The Blazers answered immediately with their biggest inning of the day in the bottom of the fourth.
Annalise Buncy opened the frame with a solo home run before VanAllen struck again with a two-run blast, her second homer of the afternoon. Later in the inning, Rachel Lee drove in a run with a groundout,
Evie Pitts delivered an RBI single, and
Jayme Prandine capped the scoring with an RBI double as Valdosta State stretched the lead to 12-1.
VanAllen led the offensive surge with a 2-for-3 performance that included two home runs and four RBIs, while Lee went 2-for-3 with a home run, a double, and three RBIs. Vallad added two hits and Buncy finished with two hits, including a home run and two RBIs.
In the circle, VanAllen also delivered a strong performance to earn the win. The right-hander tossed a complete five innings, allowing just one run on four hits while striking out four and walking two.
The win secured the weekend sweep for the Blazers after they claimed both games of Saturday's doubleheader, including a comeback victory and a walk-off win. Valdosta State will now look to carry its momentum forward as they return home with a midweek double header versus Rollins, Wednesday, March 18th with the first pitch being thrown at 2 pm E.T.
