STATESBORO, Ga. – Charleston Southern scored eight runs in the fifth inning or later Tuesday, coming from behind in both games of a midweek doubleheader to sweep Georgia Southern at Eagle Field.
 
The Bucs took an 8-7 win in the first game and a 4-1 win in the second game to snap a 10-game losing streak in non-conference road games.
 
Sarah Brown had a pair of two-hit games for the Bucs, while Ashley Meckley went 3-for-3 with a game-winning solo homer in the first game. Brooklynn Brewington and Madison Koger had two hits apiece in the second game, with Koger hitting a go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth inning of the nightcap. Alyssa Heinrich tossed a complete game and allowed just one run with a season-high five strikeouts in the second game, while Holly Clark tied her season high with six strikeouts in the first game.
 
CSU faced an early deficit in the first game after a two-run homer but took the lead with a three-run second, capped off by a Katelyn Norris two-run triple. Georgia Southern re-took the lead in the bottom of the second, but the Bucs responded in the third, as Dominique Mannerino drove in Ashley Meckley on a squeeze play. The Eagles retook the lead in the fourth on a delayed steal of home and an RBI single but Charleston Southern responded with three in the fifth, as Mannerino hit a two-run single and Sarah Brown scored on a fielding error on a Mannerino stolen base. Georgia Southern tied it in the bottom of the fifth with a solo homer. Meckley put the Bucs ahead for good in the seventh by sending the first pitch she saw halfway up the bleachers beyond the left field fence. Clark got two of her season-high six strikeouts in the last inning to close out the win.
 
After an offensive outburst in the first game, the second game was a pitchers' duel. Heinrich and the Eagles' Kyleigh Richardson traded scoreless innings through the first three innings until Georgia Southern broke through for a solo homer in the fourth. Walks in the sixth inning by Norris and Meckley put runners on base for Koger, who delivered with a three-run homer down the left field line, giving the Bucs their first lead of the nightcap. Charleston Southern added an insurance run when a fielding error allowed Brewington to score from second, while Heinrich closed the game with a 1-2-3 inning to complete the doubleheader sweep.
 
How They Scored – Game 1

• Georgia Southern opened the scoring in the first inning on a Faith Shirley two-run homer.
• The Bucs got on the board in the second when an error on a failed pickoff attempt allowed Sarah Brown to score from first base.
• CSU took the lead in the second on a Katelyn Norris two-run triple, which scored Ashlyn Cribb and Brooklynn Brewington.
• The Eagles tied the game in the second on an Alia Booth RBI double and took the lead later in the inning on a Shayla Smith sacrifice fly.
• The Bucs tied the game in the third on a squeeze play, as Dominique Mannerino laid down a bunt that Ashley Meckley scored on.
• Georgia Southern took the lead in the fourth inning on a delayed steal of home.
• The Eagles extended their lead in the fourth on a Mekhia Freeman RBI single.
• Charleston Southern tied the game in the fifth on a two-run single by Mannerino, which scored Ashley Meckley and Madison Koger.
• The Bucs took the lead when a Georgia Southern error on a stolen base allowed Sarah Brown to score from third.
• Georgia Southern tied the game in the sixth on a Janai Conklin solo homer.
• Charleston Southern grabbed the lead back in the seventh on a Meckley solo homer to left field, the final run of the game.

 
How They Scored – Game 2

• Georgia Southern opened the scoring in the fourth inning on a Janai Conklin solo homer.
• The Bucs took the lead in the sixth on a Madison Koger three-run homer to left field. Ashley Meckley and Katelyn Norris also scored on the long ball.
• CSU added an insurance run in the seventh when a Georgia Southern fielding error allowed Brooklynn Brewington to score from second.

 
Notes and News

• CSU had 11 hits in the first game of the doubleheader, marking the sixth time this season the Bucs have had 10 or more hits in a game.
• Katelyn Norris had her on-base streak extended to 12 games with a triple in the first game and a walk in the second game. Her hit streak was snapped at six games.
• Heinrich's complete game in the second game was the fifth of her career and her first since February 21, 2020 against Appalachian State.
• Heinrich's five strikeouts are also her most since a six-strikeout game against North Carolina A&T on February 9, 2018.
• Meckley's home run in the first game was her ninth of the season, which accounts for half of the Buccaneer home runs this season. To put that number into perspective, Meckley had seven home runs in her two seasons (73 games played) at Coker.
• Mannerino's three RBI's in the first game of the doubleheader are a career high.
• Meghan Gagliano's season-best hit streak was snapped at four games.
• The Bucs had an error in both games of the doubleheader, snapping a streak of six consecutive games without an error.
• The current three-game win streak is the longest of the season for Charleston Southern and marks the first time this year that the Bucs have won consecutive games.
• Charleston Southern is 4-0 when scoring eight or more runs in a game after putting up eight in the first game of the doubleheader.
• CSU's win in the second game marked the first time the Bucs won a game when trailing after five innings. The Bucs were previously 0-12 when down after five.

 
Up Next
Charleston Southern continues its 10-game road trip with a three-game series at Campbell beginning Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
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