Dukes Open NCAA Play With 2-1 Victory over Ohio

Friday, May 18

Knoxville, Tenn.

3 PM

James Madison University

43-12

Ohio

38-16

Ohio

James Madison

5/18/2018 10:55:00 PM | Softball

Box Score @JMUSoftball Box Score Photo Gallery

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – In its first game in the NCAA Softball Tournament, James Madison defeated Ohio in a 2-1 decision to advance to the winners' bracket of the Knoxville Regional Friday evening at Sherri Lee Parker Stadium at the University of Tennessee.

The Dukes improved to 43-12 on the season, while the Bobcats fell to 38-16. The Dukes play Tennessee at noon Saturday (May 19). The Lady Vols advanced with a 9-0, five-inning win over Monmouth. The JMU-UT winner moves directly into Sunday's championship game. The loser faces elimination at 5 p.m. against the Ohio-Monmouth (2:30) survivor.

In the bottom of the fifth, sophomore Kate Gordon knocked her 19th double of 2018 and drove senior Morgan Tolle home with the decisive run. With the game's lone extra-base hit, Gordon tied for second overall in program history for doubles in a single season.

Tolle notched a hit in the fifth inning and drew a walk in the bottom of the third.

Freshman Natalie Cutright scored first for the Dukes in the bottom of the third after getting hit by a pitch to reach base and advancing to third on a single courtesy of freshman Sara Jubas. Cutright then came home due to a fielding error from the Bobcats. Along with Tolle, Gordon and Jubas, sophomore Kierstin Roadcap recorded base hit for the Dukes, bringing their total to four on the day.

Sophomore Odicci Alexander, who withstood a two-hour rain delay in the fourth inning, boosted her record to 25-6 in the circle by throwing her 15th complete game. She fanned six and only allowed one unearned run and two walks.

The Bobcats tallied their only run in the top of the fifth inning aided by a fielding error.

QUOTING COACH LAPORTE
"I'm just proud of our team. It was a really long day. We had some defensive miscues there at the end, but we were able to bounce back, pick each other up and not let one mistake turn into two or three. The girls really grinded it out, and Odicci was a bulldog on the mound today. It's pretty exciting to get the first postseason win under our belt."

UP NEXT
The Dukes will face host No. 10 seeded Tennessee on Saturday, May 19 at noon. The game will be streamed live on ESPN3.