The Busy Week in Bulldogs Sports...

Jamie Southern sets a new Bulldogs softball record for career strikeouts in two-game split

By Eddie Hughes

Jamie Southern moved north on Fresno State’s career strikeouts list on Tuesday night—all the way to the top.

Southern continued her record-setting ways in Fresno State’s doubleheader split (3-3, 1-9) with Virginia on Tuesday night.

One night after tying the Fresno State single-game strikeout record of 15, Southern broke the school’s career record in a 3-1 opening game win.

“ It’s amazing that I did that,” Southern said. “I’ve never really been this strikeout pitcher.”

Of course, her 860 career strikeouts would suggest otherwise.

It didn’t take long for Southern to tie the record when Virginia’s Jessica Taylor struck out looking.

Southern then broke the record by striking out Virginia’s Hannah Owings to lead off the second inning en route to striking out the side.

“ Seeing the fans stand up, it kind of gave me a little more adrenaline,” Southern said.

Southern finished with 10 strikeouts on the evening. Former Bulldogs All-American Amanda Scott previously held the record of 851.

Things seemed to be going smoothly for the Bulldogs (16-6) in that first game until the Cavaliers (11-9) took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning when Jenn Wynn hit a bloop single over Bulldogs shortstop Christina Clark’s head. Virginia’s Jessica Taylor, who had reached base on a bunt single, scored from second base on the single.

But the Bulldogs struck back in the bottom half of the inning with back-to-back doubles from catcher Nichole Willis and second baseman Leticia Pacheco. The RBI double from Pacheco just missed clearing the left-field fence, but Willis scored easily on the play.

Clark broke the game open in the fifth inning when she pelted a liner over the left field fence for her seventh home run of the season and third in the past two days. The two-run shot knocked in Shasta Lewis to put the Bulldogs ahead 3-1.

Virginia threatened to narrow the margin in the seventh inning, but Heather Field flied out to Fresno State’s Mitzi Ing in right field to end the game.

The game began as a pitching duel between Southern, who entered with a 0.90 ERA and Virginia’s Joanna Barstad, who entered with a 0.91 ERA.

Southern gave up one run on six hits in seven innings, striking out 10 on the way to her 11th win of the season. The junior has given up just two earned runs all season and lost only once.

Barstad gave up three runs on six hits in six innings to fall to 4-3 on the season.

In a 9-3 loss in the second game of the doubleheader, Bulldogs starting pitcher Amanda Wolf escaped a first-inning jam unscathed. With the bases loaded and two outs, Virginia’s Brooke Sorber struck out swinging to end the scare.

But the Cavaliers heated up to score a run in the third inning, two in the fourth and another in the fifth.

Fresno State was silent most of game two until the team put together a string of hits for three runs in the sixth inning. Daisy Gaynor led off the rally with an infield single and Clark followed with a double over the right fielder’s head.

Then Southern knocked in the Bulldogs’ first run on a single through left side of the infield. Lori Hoffman followed with a run-scoring bloop single and Leticia Pacheco’s sacrifice fly accounted for the team’s third run of the inning.

But the Cavaliers applied the finishing touches in the seventh, scoring five more runs.