SAVANNAH, Ga. – After a slow start to the season, the Savannah State softball team roared to life this week winning five consecutive games over two separate series.
 
The Lady Tigers platted 54 runs on 50 hits over five games against non-conference opponent Livingstone College and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) foe Paine College.
 
Savannah State improves to 8-10 overall and 3-0 in SIAC play and are on a six-game winning streak that extends back to a win over NCAA Division I foe Alabama A&M on March 1. As SIAC play gets underway, Savannah State is currently the No. 1 team in the SIAC East Division and one of three undefeated teams in conference play.
 
On their home field earlier this week, Savannah State opened a doubleheader with Livingstone with an 9-1, run-rule win, blasting 11 hits into the field over the game. Centerfielder Stacie Smith led the Lady Tigers at the plate, going 3-for-3 with one double.
 
Morgan Green, Jalexia Wright and Jocelyn Lozano each had two hits in the win, while senior Shanya Byers led in RBI with four.
 
In the circle, freshman Allisyn Ferrell had an outstanding week. In the opening game against Livingstone, Ferrell pitched a full 6.0 innings, allowing one earned run on two hits, with two walks and a season-high six strikeouts.
 
In a 5-0 win in the second game against Livingstone, Mikayla Smith had one of her strongest outings of the season as well. She pitched a full 7.0 innings, allowing no runs on two hits with three walks and four strikeouts.
 
M. Smith also led the Lady Tigers at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a double. Byers recorded the first of three home runs over the week as well, and again led in RBI with three. S. Smith also had a good game at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one RBI.
 
Savannah State opened SIAC action on March 7 against Paine College. The Lady Tigers swept the entire three-game series with an emphatic batting effort, platting 40 runs on 21 hits over the three-games.
 
In game one of a doubleheader on March 7, the Lady Tigers ran away with the game in the opening inning, platting nine runs to start. They would go on to win 19-2 in the five-inning rout.
 
Lozano went 3-for-3 at the plate with three RIB on the day, while Byers went 3-for-4 with four RBI to lead the Lady Tigers. On the mound, Ferrell earned her fourth pitching win of the season, going 5.0 innings, and allowing two earned runs on four hits with one walk and seven strikeouts.
 
Savannah State again swept to victory in the second game of the doubleheader on March 7. They racked up 12 hits, scoring 13 runs to beat Paine College 13-2 in five innings.
 
M. Smith earned her third pitching win of the season, after 5.0 innings of work in the circle. She allowed no earned runs on three hits with five walks and six strikeouts. At the plate, the middle of the lineup anchored the Lady Tigers with Wright, S. Smith, Byers and Chloe Gallivan all getting two hits apiece to lead the effort.
 
In the final game on Sunday, March 8, Savannah State broke free in the third with a four-run inning. They would go on to blank Paine 8-0 to seal up the series sweep.
 
Ferrell had another outstanding outing, earning her fifth win of the season. She pitched 4.0 innings, allowing no earned runs on four hits with no walks and three strikeouts. In relief, M. Smith pitched one inning and allowed no earned runs on one hit with two strikeouts.
 
Combined, Ferrell had a 1.4 ERA for the week, allowing only three earned runs on 10 hits with three walks and 16 strikeouts against 55 batters over three games pitched.
 
Savannah State heads into the thick of their conference schedule. They head to the SIAC Softball Crossover tournament in Jasper, Alabama from March 12-14 where they will face off with six SIAC West Division teams.
 
On March 21, they open action against SIAC East Division Teams, with a trip to Albany State for a three-game series. They return home with a three-game SIAC series against Fort Valley State on March 28 and March 29 on Lady Tiger Field.