BATON ROUGE, La. — Aaliyah Zabala pitched a complete game, allowing three hits and striking out seven without issuing a walk, leading Southern to a 7-0 win over Alcorn in the opening game of their SWAC softball series Friday at Lady Jaguar Field.
Zabala kept the Braves off the board, despite Alcorn’s best scoring chance coming in the fourth inning when shortstop Olivia Miller reached on an error and advanced to third on a heads-up baserunning play. Zabala and Southern’s defense held firm, stranding Miller and maintaining the shutout.
The Jaguars broke through in the bottom of the fourth inning with a two-run homer by Abigail Mitchell, which scored Laila Clark and gave Southern a 3-0 lead. They added four more runs in the fifth, highlighted by Mitchell’s RBI triple to center field. Mitchell finished 2-for-2 with a home run, triple, and three RBIs. Clark went 2-for-3 with two RBIs, and Asia George contributed two hits and scored twice.
Alcorn starter Alainah Felton pitched the full game, allowing seven runs — six earned — on seven hits over six innings. She hit four batters and threw two wild pitches but did not walk a batter. Offensively, the Braves received hits from Miller, Yahnya Acevedo, and Mariah Morgan. The team committed three errors, which led to two of Southern’s runs.
The series continues Saturday with a doubleheader starting at noon at Lady Jaguar Field. Alcorn looks to bounce back in the remaining games. Follow Alcorn State Sports on Twitter (@BravesSports), Instagram (@AlcornSports), and YouTube (Braves Sports Network) for updates and behind-the-scenes coverage.
