HUNTSVILLE | A big first inning propelled the No. 16 University of Alabama in Huntsville softball team to a 7-1 win over visiting Florida Tech on Monday night at Charger Park. The Chargers improve to 17-5 with the victory, while the Panthers drop to 10-12.
 
The two teams now are scheduled to play a single game on Tuesday at 11 a.m.
 
Game Changer
-Back-to-back jacks from Kaitlyn Bannister and Taylor Wascavage started what would prove to be a six-run bottom half of the first as the Chargers sent 10 batters to the plate in the inning.
 
Inside the Box Score
-Haley Thompson helped the Chargers outhit Florida Tech by a 10-5 margin as she went 3-for-3 with a walk at the top of the lineup, and she also scored a run.
­-Bannister finished 2-for-4 with another pair of RBI.
-In addition to the homers from Bannister and Wascavage, Brooke Miller also homered in the contest.
-Tyler Harrison was terrific in the circle as she went the distance in earning the complete game victory, and the senior struck out nine while walking none and giving up just the five hits on her way to her fifth victory of the season.
 
Key Plays
-After the two-run shot from Bannister was followed up by the solo home run from Wascavage, another run would be driven in on a double off the bat of Reagan Malone, while Sarah Jordan's infield single later in the first made it 5-0.
-The scoring in the inning was completed by Ashley Cornell's productive ground out on which Erin Jewell scored.
-The game remained 6-0 in favor of the Chargers until FIT pushed across a run in the top of the third, and the 7-1 final was created when Miller homered in the fifth.
 
Noteworthy
-Bannister's pair of RBI give her 31 on the season and 231 for her career which is now the second-best mark in program history. The senior needs two more to tie Melanie Carter's record of 233.
-The home run for Bannister is her team-best fifth of the year, while Miller now is second on the team with three. Wascavage is tied for third with a pair.
-Harrison's nine strikeouts represent her third-best total of the season.