CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Golden Grizzlies start the season 2-0 and come out of the first day of the Cougar Classic unscathed.

Game #1 vs South Carolina State 

After a scoreless first inning, Oakland started the second inning with a double down the left field line by Kamryn Troyer. With following back-to-back walks, Brooklyn Plitz stepped up to the plate for an RBI single bringing Troyer in to score, giving the Golden Grizzlies the 1-0 lead. Later in the inning, Reese Ruhlman squeezed a single through the left side of the infield to score two more runs, opening up a 3-0 lead by the end of the inning.

Sydney Cambell caught her flow in the next half inning, striking out two of three batters as SC State went three-up-three down.

The Golden Grizzlies kept the ball rolling in the third with a lead-off walk to Troyer. Plitz came through with another RBI single to the left side of the infield, scoring Troyer as Oakland continued to roll, going up 4-0.

The Golden Grizzlies weren't done in the inning, as Maci Brown grounded into a fielder's choice, bringing Allisa DiPrima around to score. The very next at-bat, Ruhlman notched her second hit of the day as she ripped a triple to center field, bringing Brown around to score, giving Oakland a 6-0 lead.

Campbell rounded out the bottom of the inning with another pair of strikeouts, bringing her total to four in just three innings so far.

With the game teetering into blowout territory, The Golden Grizzlies kept their foot on the gas in the fourth inning. After a wild pitch advanced Madi Herrington to second base, Jenna Johnston singled up the middle, scoring Herrington and giving Oakland a now 7-0 lead.

Campbell continued to rack up the strikeouts, tossing four more K's in the next two innings, keeping SC State at bay.

After 2 scoreless innings in the fifth and sixth, Oakland kept the bats warm in the seventh inning. Brown smacked a two-out single to get on base, followed by a third Ruhlman hit of the game, a single to center field, advancing Brown to second. Jen Krizka scorched an RBI single up the middle to score Brown, putting Oakland up 8-0.

Campbell closed out the game, tossing her first complete game of the season, racking up 10 strikeouts, tying a career-high (vs UT-Martin, 2/25/23).

Highlights: Sydney Cambell had a game pitching 7 innings, only allowing 3 hits and having 10 strikeouts. 
Ruhlman led the Grizzlies with 3-5 plate appearances, with 3 RBI's. Plitz and Krizka both went 2-4 for plate appearances with 3 RBI's combined. 


Game #2 vs College of Charleston 

Through the first two innings, it was a slow start for the bats to wake up. Both teams kept fighting with strong pitching and defense. 

Charleston struck first at the bottom of the third inning, with three consecutive singles. Maggie Murphy made a much needed double play to hold the Cougars only to one run as Oakland trailed 1-0. 

After a scoreless fourth inning, Charleston ramped the offense up again in the bottom of the fifth inning scoring three more runs, pushing it to a 4-1 lead. 

The large deficit didn't sit well with the Golden Grizzlies. Brown came out swinging with a single, followed by a Reese Ruhlman sacrifice bunt moving Brown to second base.  Jen Krizka kept the ball rolling with another single, loading the bases, where Murphy stood tall at the plate, drawing a walk and scoring Brown to put Oakland behind 2-4.

Oakland's big inning was just getting started as Troyer hit a double into left center field, scoring Ruhlman and Plitz making it a 3-4 game. An error by the Cougars on the next at-bat caused Troyer to steal home and tie the game at 4. 

Taylor Carraway sparked a big moment, blasting a home-run and taking a 5-4 lead over Charleston. Oakland kept striking in the top of the sixth inning, as a single by Madi Herrington followed by another bunt by Brown.  

Against the fence with two outs, Plitz dropped an RBI single, followed by a walk by Murphy. Troyer knocked  another double to score three more runs as Oakland completed the comeback victory, securing an 8-4 win. 

Highlights: Troyer was 2-3 at the plate with 5 RBI's, Brown was 2-4 in the box and Carraway was 1-3 with a homerun to take the lead over the Cougars. 

The Golden Grizzlies gear up for Day two of the Cougar Classic tomorrow, where they face-off against Princeton at 12 p.m. and play their second of three matchups against Charleston at 5 p.m.

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