Cards Defeat LIU and Georgetown to Open FGCU Kickoff Classic

Friday, February 9

Ft. Myers, Fla.

10:00 AM

University of Louisville

LIU

Cards Defeat LIU and Georgetown to Open FGCU Kickoff Classic

February 09, 2024 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Louisville picks up a pair of wins to open the 2024 campaign

By: Lori Harmon

FT. MYERS, Fla. – The University of Louisville softball team defeated LIU 2-0 and Georgetown 4-1 to open the season Friday at the FGCU Kickoff Classic. The Cardinals (2-0) will return to action on Saturday when they face the Hoyas again at 5 p.m. followed by a 7:30 p.m. matchup with host Florida Gulf Coast.

Louisville 2 – LIU 0
Alyssa Zabala (1-0) picked up the win, giving up three hits and striking out one in four innings of work while Sam Booe earned the save and combined on the shutout, allowing only one hit while fanning five in three innings of relief. Riley Frizell tallied two hits and an RBI while Bailee Richardson also had a hit and drove in a run to lead Louisville at the plate.

The Cardinals struck early with a pair of runs in the first inning. Easton Lotus and Kiley Goff drew back-to-back walks and advanced a fielder's choice by Daisy Hess to bring up Frizell who laced a single to right field for her first hit and RBI in a Louisville uniform. Another pair of Cardinals registered firsts at Louisville when Richardson's groundball plated Goff to make the score 2-0.

LIU's best chance to score came in the third inning when a pair of singles and a sacrifice bunt moved runners to second and third with one out, but Zabala and the Cardinals' defense retired the next to batters to preserve the shutout.

Cowans (0-1) took the loss in LIU's season opener, allowing two earned runs on six hits and striking out five. Priscilla Gillies led the Sharks with a 2-for-2 performance at the plate.

Louisville 4 – Georgetown 1
The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead in the second inning, but Georgetown answered in the top of the fifth. Louisville used late-inning offense with a run in the fifth and a pair of insurance runs in the sixth en route to the 4-1 win.

Brooke Gray picked up her first collegiate win, holding the Hoyas scoreless on one hit and striking out one in 1.1 innings of relief. Izzy Harrison delivered three strikeouts while earning the save. Lotus went 2-for-4 with a stolen base and Paige Geraghty went 2-for-3 with a triple and a run to lead the Cards who tallied nine hits in the game.

The Cards opened the scoring in the second inning when Geraghty legged out a triple and crossed the plate on a hit by Ally Alexander.

The Hoyas (0-1) answered in the fifth when Claire Turner drew a leadoff walk and eventually scored on Samantha Miller's two-out single to even the score at 1-1.

Louisville quickly countered in the home half of the inning when Hess earned a walk. Two outs later, Geraghty's hit and a Georgetown error send Hess home to put the Cards back on top. The offense continued in the sixth when Maddi Grant connected on a leadoff pinch-hit single and Chelsea Mack followed with an RBI hit and proceeded to steal second. Lotus singled Mack home for the 4-1 final.

Kayla Dunn (0-1) took the loss, surrendering four runs, three earned, on eight hits and striking out five in five innings of work. Camryn Wincher and Maicie Levitt each had a pair of hits in the contest.

NOTES:

Louisville improves to 16-9 in season opening games.
Easton Lotus has now reached base safely in 18 straight games dating back to the April 16, 2023 win over Oakland.
Lotus, Chelsea Mack, Paige Geraghty and Riley Frizell each totaled two hits on the day.