SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Tuskegee softball team had a successful first day at the CIAA-SIAC Classic, defeating Claflin (14-3) and Lincoln (5-4) on Friday afternoon in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
Tuskegee 14, Claflin 3
Thompson drove in five runs on two hits, including one three-run homer, in the first game of the day, leading Tuskegee past the Panthers.
Tuskegee got on the board in the opening inning, as leadoff hitter
T'yauna Rector drew a walk and advanced to third after a pair of steals. On the next at-bat,
Jessica Morales drove Rector home for the first score on a groundout to shortstop.
Claflin scored in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single, tying the game at 1-1 heading into the second.
The Golden Tigers regained the lead in the fourth, as
Jada Chadwick drove home two runs on a double, followed by the bomb from Thompson to go up 6-1. TU went on to score six more runs on six hits in the top of the sixth inning.
Caroline Clark drove home the first run with an RBI single, followed by a double from
Aaliyah Byrd to drive home two, followed lastly by an RBI double from Kaeley Rolden before the close of the frame.
Clark earned the win for Tuskegee in the game, allowing four hits and two runs over four and two-thirds innings, striking out four and walking none.
Kamya Hampton got the start in the circle and gave up one hit and one run over one and one-third innings, striking out one.
TU collected 13 total hits in the win, led by Byrd who went 3-for-4 from the plate. Clark, Chadwick, and Rector all earned multiple hits, while Rector also stole three of the four bases for the team.
Tuskegee 5, Lincoln 4
Tuskegee opened the scoring again in game two in the top of the first in a similar manner, as Rector earned a leadoff bunt single and scored on an infield hit from Morales. TU added another run in the second as Da'Jhay Norton doubled to drive home
Laila Wood for a 2-0 lead.
Lincoln responded in the fifth, tying the game at 2-2 after an RBI single on a full count, however Morales broke the tie in the seventh with another RBI single to score Rector for the second time in the game.
Three batters later with the bases loaded, Morales stole home before
Carole Ross was subbed in to pinch hit and drove home the final run for Tuskegee on a groundout. Lincoln made another push in the bottom of the inning, however fell short by a run in the 5-4 matchup.
Hampton earned the win in the circle,
Morales provided offense in the middle of the lineup and led Tuskegee with two runs batted in and went 2-for-4 on the day. Chadwick and Rector also both collected two hits in the game, while Morales and Rector stole four of the seven total bases for TU.
Up Next
The Golden Tigers continue the CIAA-SIAC Classic tomorrow with Virginia State at 12:30 p.m. and Fayetteville State at 3 p.m.
How to Follow the Golden Tigers: For complete information on Tuskegee Golden Tigers Softball, visit
GoldenTigerSports.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
