Kentucky Softball Drops Series Against No. 25 South Carolina

Kentucky Softball celebrated their seniors over the weekend as they took on South Carolina at John Cropp Stadium, but the good vibes didn’t last long.

The Wildcats came into the final home regular season weekend with a 7-11 SEC record and a No. 22 ranking in the country. The Gamecocks had a similar record in conference play but trailed by just a few games and were ranked No. 25. This was an important weekend for both teams as they head into the postseason.

Unfortunately, after winning back-to-back SEC series, Kentucky dropped the rubber match on Sunday to lose the series against South Carolina. The Wildcats will now go into next weekend’s final regular season series against No. 3 Tennessee with a 30-18 overall record and an 8-13 mark in the SEC.

Game 1: South Carolina 5, Kentucky 2

The final home weekend slate started on Friday night and did not start well for the ‘Cats. South Carolina got off to a hot start at the top of the first after hitting a lead-off triple. Freshman and right-handed pitcher Sydney Langdon gave up another single to give the Gamecocks an early 1-0 lead after the first.

At the top of the second Langdon continued to struggle in the circle. An RBI single and bases-loaded walk gave South Carolina room to bring in three more scores and take a 4-0 lead. Luckily for Kentucky a Gamecock defensive error in the third allowed a Wildcat to make it home and cut the deficit to 4-1.

Although the ‘Cats changed pitchers a few times in the game, South Carolina hit a solo homer in the fourth to maintain a large 5-1 cushion. In the end, a mixture of Kentucky’s lack of offense and poor pitching allowed the Gamecocks to take game one in the series with a 5-1 victory.

Game 2: Kentucky 3, South Carolina 1

Saturday’s game between the Wildcats and Gamecocks was the Stephanie Schoonover show. The senior and ace in the circle pitched a complete game allowing only one run off seven hits and tallied four strikeouts. South Carolina did jump on top first in the second inning after hitting an RBI single off Schoonover to go up 1-0.

But late in the game, the ‘Cats exploded on offense.

An unlikely hitter in pitcher Jaden Vickers played a major role for Kentucky from the plate after nailing a ball to left field which brought in the tying score for the Wildcats. Two RBI triples courtesy of seniors Vanessa Nesby and Rylea Smith put the Lady Bat ‘Cats up 3-1. Schoonover closed things out in the seventh after striking out her last three batters to secure the 3-1 win and tie the series at 1-1 going into Sunday’s rubber match.

Game 3: South Carolina 3, Kentucky 0

The final day of play between Kentucky and South Carolina started similar to Friday’s match-up. Graduate transfer and left-handed pitcher Vickers started on the mound for the Wildcats but gave up two solo bombs back-to-back at the top of the first to give the Gamecocks a 2-0 lead.

After two innings Schoonover stepped in for Vickers on the mound. The senior veteran pitcher held South Carolina scoreless until the fifth when she also gave up a solo homer which increased the Gamecocks’ lead to 3-0. Kentucky had a few chances late in the game to make a comeback but stranded runners on base and brought in no runs, allowing South Carolina to take the game 3-0 and the series 2-1.

Coming up next for the ‘Cats is top-ranked Tennessee in Knoxville. The final regular season conference series for Kentucky will begin on Friday, May 3 at 6:00 p.m. EST.