By: Summer Smiley, Staff Writer 

VALDOSTA, Ga. – From a double-header sweep on Saturday, to a tough 3-11 loss on Sunday, VSU softball ultimately takes control of nationally ranked the University of Alabama Huntsville chargers in this weekend’s home opener at Steel’s Diamond at Blazer Park.  

Pitching was a key factor in the wins from both teams this weekend. For VSU, both Savannah Barfield and Toree Wofford had a great performance with Barfield pitching eight straight innings in game one, 4 strikeouts, 109 NP, and only giving up one earned run to UAH. 

Wofford helped lead the team to a 4-1 victory in game two on Saturday, pitching 4.2 innings, 2 strikeouts, no earned runs, 44 NP, and no walks. 

For the Chargers, Megan Shurtz gave VSU a run for their money in game one by keeping the score 0-0 for the first seven innings, pitched 6 strikeouts, gave up 2 runs, and only allowed one walk for the Blazers. 

“We had two good pitch performances this weekend from Savannah and from Toree,” said Valdosta’s head coach Thomas Macera. “They pitched really well and.. some girls hit well, but nobody was just over dominating, hitting wise, and then the entire defense played great. So, I really think it was a team effort this weekend.” 

At bat, Jayme Prandine and Cailyn Cooke both made crucial contributions to advance their team from a three-to-five game win streak on Saturday. 

Prandine heavily assisted in the 2-1 win in the first game with 4 at-bats, one hit, and an RBI that allowed the Blazers to get their final lead on UAH in the eighth inning, followed by Cooke with 3 at-bats, one run, one hit, and 2 RBIs in the second game. 

Coach Macera says that staying positive and strong-minded is the key to moving forward in conferences during the next few months to come. 

“We got to understand we need to take care of our business and not theirs and we just have to stay focused. It takes seven innings to win a game, and we’ve come from behind enough that we know we just have to keep playing our game.” 

The Blazers currently hold a record of 9-7 and will go on to play in another GSC three-series matchup against the UWA tigers on Mar 7-8 with the first pitch on Saturday being at 2 p.m.