AUGUSTA, Ga. – The No. 8 University of North Georgia (UNG) softball team dropped the series finale on the road at Augusta 10-6 Saturday afternoon.
Junior center fielder
Natalie Ray homered twice in the game, but Augusta's (26-25, 6-15 Peach Belt) seven-run third inning was ultimately too much for the Nighthawks (39-9, 18-3) to overcome.
Ray opened the day with a two-run homer in her first at bat to give UNG a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning.
The Jaguars responded with one run in the bottom half of the inning before taking their first lead of the game with an RBI single and a bases-loaded hit by pitch in the third.
Augusta would tack on four more runs in the frame to post a seven on the scoreboard and lead 8-2 after three innings.
The Nighthawks mounted a comeback effort in the fourth inning when junior first baseman
Marycille Brumby reached base with a lead-off double. Brumby scored later on an RBI single from senior shortstop
Rylie Moody who had six RBIs in the series.
Moody's base knock sparked a two-out rally for UNG as Ray stepped up to bat. The outfielder launched her second homer of the game over the wall to make it a three-run contest. Ray is now second on the team this season with 13 home runs which also ranks third in the Peach Belt Conference.
After consecutive walks, sophomore infielder
Ava Lunsford singled through the right side to score the sixth run of the game for the Nighthawks and make it 8-6.
That would be the last run scored of the day for UNG as the Jaguars tallied two insurance runs in the sixth inning to seal the win.
Now the Nighthawks set their sights on the final weekend series of the regular season. They will head to Bluffton, S.C. to take on USC Beaufort for a three-game set beginning on April 26. First pitch in the Saturday doubleheader is scheduled for 12 p.m.
