The No. 11-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College softball team registered a pair of victories Saturday, climaxed by a 6-5 nine-inning triumph against No. 23 Lindsey Wilson College (Kentucky) in the Grizzly Open from the Grizzly Softball Complex.

The Grizzlies (3-1) rallied from an early 2-0 deficit to record a walk-off victory against the Blue Raiders (2-2) for the second straight day. That came after an 11-4 victory against Thomas University (Georgia).

With senior Brooke Parker managing to get to third base in the extra-inning sudden death situation against Lindsey Wilson, a ground ball by junior Lea McFadden was bobbled twice by the shortstop and unable to make a throw to first base. That allowed Parker to score and cap a thrilling extra-inning victory.

In the top of the eighth inning, McFadden made a running catch on the warning track as Lindsey Wilson had the bases loaded with two outs.

"I knew that [Makea-Al Kaluau] is their best hitter so I took two steps back. When she hit the ball I was in a full sprint to the warning track and was determined to come up with the catch," said McFadden of the game's key defensive play.

Junior pitcher Alexa Good tossed a scoreless top of the ninth inning in a relief appearance to set up the dramatic ninth inning.

Earlier, senior Piper Wagner blasted a two-run home run to center field in the fourth inning to tie the contest at 2-2.

GGC took a 3-2 lead one inning later before the teams traded momentum shifts and late-inning runs. An infield single from freshman Kayla Good provided the go-ahead run in that fifth frame. Sophomore Kloey Goins delivered an extra base hit in the sixth inning to bring home Wagner to put the Grizzlies ahead again 4-3. An insurance run was later added when a fielding error by the Lindsey Wilson pitcher allowed Goins to score.

However, the Blue Raiders answered in the top of the seventh inning to force extra innings. Elizabeth Funk drew a bases-loaded walk to cut the deficit to 5-4 before Alexis Garayzar brought home the tying run on an infield smash that the GGC defense turned into a double play.

In the first game of the day, the Grizzlies tallied 15 hits in the win against Thomas (1-3), avenging an opening-game loss on the weekend. Freshman Angelica Gallegos hit her second home run of the season and went 3-for-4 to lead the offensive attack. The hosts scored five runs in the second inning behind a bases-clearing double from Wagner. Gallegos then connected on a home run in the fourth inning to give the Grizzlies an 8-4 lead.

Three run-scoring singles from sophomore Josie Haulk, McFadden and Gallegos in the fifth inning pushed the Grizzlies' advantage to the final 11-4 score.

Junior Alexa Good picked up the victory in both games, tossing six scoreless innings in relief against Thomas and pitching those two scoreless in extra innings – a game she originally started. She stands 3-1 on the season.


 
"You want to play in exciting extra-inning games to see where you stand. We saw a lot of growth out of several players today. The play that Lea made is why she's in center field. She gets good reads and is a great athlete. Her (eighth-inning) play gave us a boost of momentum," said Head Coach Kat Ihlenburg.
 
It was a stellar extra-inning defensive play that sparked the Grizzlies to the second-game victory. With the bases loaded and two outs, junior center fielder Lea McFadden made a running catch at the warning track to take away a possible extra bases and go-ahead base hit from Lindsey Wilson hitter Makea-Al Kaluau. McFadden later ended the game when her ground ball was misplayed by the opposing shortstop, allowing junior Brooke Parker to score the winning run, 6-5, in the bottom of the ninth inning.
 
Thomas Game
Bottom of Second
Piper Wagner cleared the bases with a double to give the Grizzlies a 5-4 lead
Sydney Pelaez followed with an RBI double to bring home Piper Wagner
Kloey Goins added a run-scoring single to cap a five-run inning
 
Bottom of Fourth
Angelica Gallegos connected on a solo home run to left field
 
Bottom of Fifth
Three straight RBI singles from Josie Haulk, Lea McFadden and Angelica Gallegos helped stretch the lead to 11-4
 
Lindsey Wilson Game
Bottom of Fourth
Piper Wagner tied the game, 2-2, with a two-run home run over the center field wall
 
Bottom of Fifth
Lindzie Owen scored from second base off an infield single by Kayla Good to give the Grizzlies a 3-2 lead
 
Bottom of Sixth
Kloey Goins gave the hosts a 4-3 lead with an RBI double
 
Top of Eighth
Lea McFadden made a running catch on the warning track with the bases loaded and two outs to keep the game tied in extra innings
 
Bottom of Ninth
With two outs, Lea McFadden hit a ground ball to shortstop that was misplayed, allowing Brooke Parker to score from third base with the game-winning run
 

• The Grizzlies recorded 22 hits on Saturday, highlighted by 15 hits against Thomas
• Senior Piper Wagner and freshman Angelica Gallegos have each hit two home runs this season
• Junior pitcher Alexa Good has been the winning pitcher in all three games of the Grizzlies' victories this opening weekend

• GGC improves to 3-1 on the season; Thomas is 1-3 and Lindsey Wilson stands 2-2
• The Grizzlies were ranked No. 11 in the 2022 NAIA Top 25 preseason poll; Lindsey Wilson stood No. 23 in the same poll
• GGC tied the series with Thomas, 9-9, with Saturday's victory; the Grizzlies lead the series against Lindsey Wilson by a 5-3 margin

Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to conclude the Grizzly Open on Sunday, February 13, by facing No. 22 University of the Cumberlands (Kentucky) at noon and Reinhardt University (Georgia) at 2:30 p.m.