East Carolina Cruises Past Cleveland State 7-0 In Pirate Clash Finale

GREENVILLE, N.C. – A pair of home runs by junior infielder Meredith Burroughs sparked East Carolina to a 7-0 victory over Cleveland State in the finale of the Pirate Clash Sunday at the ECU Softball Stadium.

Fordham defeated Bryant 16-0 in six innings to begin the day before Saint Francis picked up a 9-0 six-inning win over Cleveland State in game two.

The Purple and Gold finished the weekend with a 4-1 record, tying Saint Francis for the best record among the tournament participants.

The Rundown

The Pirates (5-5) limited Cleveland State (1-7) to two hits while rapping out nine of their own in the shutout victory – the first time East Carolina has blanked an opponent this season.

Burroughs filled the stat sheet to the tune of two hits, including her second and third home runs of the campaign, two runs scored and five RBI. She also recorded 10 putouts at first base. Senior outfielder Kacie Oshiro scored two runs and drew a walk while redshirt junior catcher Alex Mycek tacked on her second home run of the season. Melissa Jacobsen and Bailee Gray notched the only two Viking hits.

Senior RHP Lydia Ritchie (3-3) secured her second victory of the weekend, tossing 5.2 innings of relief and allowing just one hit while walking three and striking out three. Mackenzie Joecken (1-3) was saddled with the loss as she surrendered seven runs (four earned) on eight hits with two strikeouts and a walk.

The Decisive Inning

With two outs in the bottom of the third, senior outfielder Ciara Ervin singled to center field before Oshiro reached on an error in center field. That would prove costly for Cleveland State as Burroughs stepped up and crushed an 0-2 pitch high over the right field fence to extend the Pirate lead to 4-0. East Carolina added one run in the fourth and two in the fifth on Burroughs’ second round-tripper to provide the final margin.

Statistic of the Game

ECU made good on more than half of its opportunities to advance runners as they were 7-for-13 in the situation. The Pirates also continued to pound out hits for extra bases, collecting three home runs and a double.

Up Next

East Carolina will take the week to prepare for next weekend’s Pirate Invitational when ECU welcomes Virginia, Virginia Tech, Seton Hall and Coppin State to Greenville for the three-day event Feb. 24-26.