VALDOSTA –– The No. 4-ranked Valdosta State Lady Blazers offensive onslaught carried it to two Gulf South Conference wins against the visiting Union University Lady Bulldogs in the 2019 home-opener. The Lady Blazers used the long ball in game one to win 11-2 in six innings, before battling back from a 6-1 deficit for a 7-6 victory in eight innings.

No. 4 Valdosta 11, Union 2 (Game 1)

VSU racked up five home runs from five different players to secure their first home win of the season. The Blazer offense tallied eleven runs on eleven hits with three errors, while Union had two runs off of four hits and two errors.

Valdosta State’s first run came from a first-and-third situation when junior Dream Aaron drew the throw to second base, allowing junior Jordenne Gaten to steal home. Moments later, junior Lacey Crandall crushed a three-run home run over the left-center fence to put VSU ahead 4-0 all in the first inning.

In the second inning, Gaten and Aaron struck again as Gaten, the left fielder out of Jacksonville, Fla., sent one over the scoreboard with a solo home run, followed by a two-run shot from Aaron to center field to put the Blazers up 7-0 at the end of two.

Union answered back, but not until the sixth inning, with a two-run homer from Haley Barnette to cut the deficit to 7-2. That didn’t stop VSU as the Lady Blazers strung together three runs to finish out the game and force a run-rule ending. Gaten crossed the plate first as she capitalized on a Union throwing error, followed by a single from junior Taylor Strickland, which allowed Aaron to tally her third RBI of the game with a single to left field to plate Strickland. Junior Logan Hill ended the game in walk-off fashion with a monster shot over the center field wall to secure the Lady Blazer victory.

Senior Kasie Johnson (5-1) recorded the win as she put in six innings of work from the rubber, while only allowing two runs and four hits, and gave up just one walk with 12 strikeouts in 26 batters faced.

No. 4 Valdosta State 7, Union 6 (Game 2)

In the nightcap, VSU had to earn its win as Union came out firing in game two. The Lady Blazers struck first as Gaten stole third base and scored on a throwing error by the catcher in the bottom of the first.

The Lady Bulldogs bats came alive in the second inning as they strung together three hits and plated four runs before junior Giovanna Watts came in to relieve Avery Lamb on the rubber. Watts allowed two runs to score before shutting down the Union rally, as the Blazers trailed 6-1 for the majority of the game.

VSU chipped away in the third as sophomore Kiley Robb drew a walk with bases loaded to plate Logan Hill and cut the Bulldog lead to four.

In the sixth, Taylor Strickland blasted a two-run home run over the right-center fence to score Natalia Bellinger and cut the lead to two.

A three-and-out inning by Watts proved to be the momentum changer in the seventh inning as the VSU bats strung together three hits in the bottom of the frame before a Bellinger single plated Crandall and tied the game up at six to force extra innings.

In the bottom of the eighth, Strickland started off the inning with a double off the left-center fence before Hill blasted her fourth home run of the season and second of the day, in walk-off fashion once again, to secure the Blazer win, 7-6.

Watts put in six of work, allowing three hits, one earned run, walked none and fanned six to improve to 1-1 on the season.

VSU recorded eleven hits on seven runs with one error, while Union had six runs off of seven hits and one error.