HUNTSVILLE | Softball in May at Charger Park is never a dull affair, and on this day it was no different as the No. 18 University of Alabama in Huntsville softball team swept a doubleheader from No. 2 Valdosta State, walking off with a 4-3 win in the opener before hanging on for a 7-6 win in the nightcap while snapping VSU's 21-game winning streak. UAH improves to 29-10 (22-7 Gulf South Conference), while VSU slips to 32-5 (25-4 GSC).
 
Next Time Out
-The two teams will wrap up the series and the regular season on Sunday. First pitch is slated for 12 p.m.
 
UAH 4, Valdosta State 3
Game Changer
-Laura Harbin hit a pinch-hit single into right-center with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, plating Mackenzie Nutt and sparking a celebration in the infield as it gave the Chargers the 4-3 win.
 
Inside the Box Score
-The game was tightly contested with both teams collecting seven hits.
-Both Kiara Akles and Lila Young had a pair of hits for the Chargers, with Akles joining Kaylee Vaught in belting a home run in the game.
-Each of Akles, Vaught, Harbin, and Ashley Cornell had an RBI.
-Nutt walked twice and scored twice from the top of the UAH lineup.
-Layton Murphy went the distance in the circle, scattering the seven hits while allowing just the three runs and striking out three.
 
Key Plays
-After Murphy stranded a pair by getting the last two batters to strike out to end the top of the first, UAH would get on the board first as Nutt walked to lead off the inning, advanced to second on Shelby Booker's sacrifice, and then scored when Cornell singled through the left side to put the hosts ahead 1-0.
-Vaught would then lead off the bottom of the second with a homer to center to make it a two-run advantage for the Chargers, and it would be a 3-0 lead for the Blue and White when Akles homered to center herself with two outs in the bottom of the third.
-In the top of the fourth, Alaina Hampton would end the inning by throwing out a would-be base stealer at third, and the middle infield would shine in the top of the fifth as a 4-6-3 double play erased a leadoff runner before a fly out ended the inning.
-VSU would get on the board with a two-run home run in the top of the sixth and then manufactured a run in the top of the seventh to tie the game at 3-3.
-In the home half of the seventh, VSU got the first two outs of the inning on just four pitches before Nutt would draw a walk on four straight.
-Harbin would then step in as a pinch hitter, working a 2-2 count during which Nutt would steal second, allowing her to score when Harbin sent into the grass in right-center, ending the game with UAH the 4-3 winner.
 
Noteworthy
-UAH's seven hits are tied for the second-most that VSU pitcher Samantha Richards has given up on the year, and the four runs are tied for the most she has allowed. 
-Nutt has now scored 33 times which ranks second on the team.
-Vaught's home run is her fourth of the season.
-Murphy is now 14-4 on the season.
 
UAH 7, Valdosta State 6
Game Changer
-Akles went 2-for-3 in the game with three RBI including a key two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth that gave the Chargers their important sixth and seventh runs of the game.
 
Inside the Box Score
-The Chargers outhit VSU by a 7-6 margin in the contest.
-Joining Akles in having a two-hit game was Booker who was also 2-for-3, and both Aker and Booker also scored twice in the game.
-Cornell and Vaught both logged an RBI in the contest.
-Grace O'Berry gave UAH its second complete game in the circle on the day, working around the six hits while striking out a pair and allowing the six runs.
 
Key Plays
-The Chargers started off with a big first inning, ultimately sending all nine batters to the plate in a four-run frame that saw Akles drive in a run before scoring on a wild pitch, Vaught singling in Hampton, and Vaught scoring on a VSU error to give UAH a 4-0 lead.
-O'Berry was especially strong at the start, retiring seven in a row before allowing a single and a two-run homer in the top of the third that cut UAH's lead in half at 4-2, and a wild pitch in the fourth allowed the Blazers to pull within one at 4-3 before Hampton caught another stealing to end the inning.
-UAH would then use small ball and power in the fourth to go up 7-3 as a Cornell sacrifice squeezed in Reagan Malone for the first run before Akles hit a no-doubter to center for the other pair of runs.
-A scoreless fifth would follow before VSU crossed the plate three times in the sixth to make it a 7-6 game, and O'Berry then worked a 1-2-3 inning in the seventh including punching out the final batter to give UAH the win.
 
Noteworthy
-Akles now has 10 homers on the season which leads the team, and she has a team-best 43 RBI.
-O'Berry is now 7-2 after tossing her third complete game.