The Georgia Gwinnett College softball team moved another step closer to winning the 2019 Association of Independent Institutions Softball Championships with an 8-1 victory against Edward Waters College (Fla.) on Friday afternoon in a tournament being played at the Grizzly Softball Complex.

GGC and Edward Waters will meet again Saturday at 9 a.m. in the championship round. The game time was moved up in the day because of inclement weather in the forecast.

The top-seeded Grizzlies (38-14) scored in five of their six offensive innings through 13 hits to earn the second straight victory of the tournament.

Senior Elyssa Melton connected on a two-run home run in the first inning as the hosts jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead. The team would add two more runs in the second inning while scoring single runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings.

Juniors RaeQuinn Rossetti and Taylor Takushi each had three hits to lead the team's offensive attack.

Meanwhile, senior pitcher Taylor Hansis picked up her 21th victory on the season as she struck out two batters across three innings in the starting assignment. Freshman Alexa Good did not allow a hit over four innings and recorded five strikeouts in relief.

The victory means GGC has earned one of the A.I.I.'s two automatic bids to the Opening Round of the NAIA Softball Championships. Edward Waters, the No. 3 seed, came back to defeat No. 2-seeded Crowley's Ridge College (Ark.) 8-5 in nine innings in an elimination game Friday evening.


 
Coach's Corner
"Our pitchers threw another commanding game. It is good to see that they can command the strike zone. Elyssa and Sydney (Willhite) hit the ball hard and it was good to see that type of production from them," said Head Coach Kat Ihlenburg.
 
Turning Point
One swing from senior Elyssa Melton, producing a two-run homer, allowed the Grizzlies to build a commanding 3-0 lead in the opening inning of the game. GGC would add more runs in four of the next five frames to earn the first spot in the championship round of the double-elimination tournament.
           
Key Plays
Bottom of First
Elyssa Melton connected on a two-run home run over the left field fence to give the Grizzlies a 3-0 lead
 
Bottom of Second
Crystal Busbee hit a run-scoring single to bring home RaeQuinn Rossetti
Sydney Willhite added a RBI single
 
Bottom of Third
Taylor Takushi extended GGC's lead to 6-1 with a run-scoring single
 
Bottom of Fifth
RaeQuinn Rossetti capped the scoring for the Grizzlies with a RBI double
 
Inside The Numbers

• The Grizzlies collected 13 hits for the second consecutive postseason game
• Juniors RaeQuinn Rossetti and Taylor Takushi each went 3-for-4 for the Grizzlies
• Senior Crystal Busbee registered three assists from third base
• Freshman Alexa Good struck out four batters over four innings in relief

News & Notes

• GGC improves to 38-14 on the season; Edward Waters stands 13-18
• Georgia Gwinnett College is the top seed in the double-elimination tournament; Edward Waters stood as the No. 3 seed
• The Grizzlies are ranked No. 9 in the latest NAIA Top 25 poll
• The team has allowed just one hit and one run through 12 innings in the A.I.I. tournament
• GGC is seeking to win its third straight conference tournament title

Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College will once again play Edward Waters in the championship round on Saturday, May 4, at 9 a.m. The game time was moved up in the day due to inclement weather being in the forecast. Edward Waters defeated No. 2-seeded Crowley's Ridge College (Ark.) 8-5 in Friday's nightcap to earn its opportunity in the championship round.