Montgomery, Ala. — Alcorn State’s softball team split two games Friday at the HBCU Celebration Classic, hosted by Alabama State. The Braves earned a 22-5 win over Mississippi Valley State before falling 7-0 to Alabama State in late-night action.
Alcorn’s victory over Mississippi Valley State was highlighted by a grand slam from senior Mariah Morgan, her first inside-the-park home run. Morgan, from Ripley, Tennessee, drove in three runs in the opening inning as the Braves scored four times. They added six runs in the third and seven in the fourth to put the game out of reach. Yahnya Acevedo led the team with her third home run of the year, a two-run shot in the fourth inning.
Chiara Olison earned the win for Alcorn, pitching a complete game with five runs allowed on eight hits. Madison Bruce took the loss for Mississippi Valley State, surrendering 22 runs on 20 hits in her outing. All but one Alcorn player recorded a hit in the game, and Thompson went 5-for-5 at the plate with three RBIs and three runs scored.
Later Friday, Alabama State scored four runs in the fourth inning and added three more in the fifth to defeat Alcorn 7-0. The Hornets took advantage of errors and timely hitting, including a triple by Jaibriel Terrell that cleared the bases. Kohana Pousson pitched a complete game, striking out 13 batters and allowing just one hit.
Alcorn’s Alainah Felton pitched four-plus innings in the loss, giving up five runs. Reliever Se’Marai Smith finished the game, allowing two runs on one hit over 1.2 innings. The Braves will face Jackson State on Saturday at 2 p.m., though start times may shift due to weather conditions in Montgomery.
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