"We experienced some successes and trials today," began head coach Amy Tudor. "I am very proud of our fight. Twice we responded when we were behind and in the bottom of the seventh with the bases loaded, Katie [Gardner] was great. Brylee [Hage] had a huge homer to get us to the tie – she had a great day at the plate as well as Randi [Drinnon]."
Hage turned in a 2-for-4 day at the plate with three RBI thanks to a two-run double and her sixth-inning solo home run. Randi Drinnon posted a 3-for-4 effort in the box for the first three-hit game of her career.
Gardner posted double-digit strikeouts for the first time of the season and second time of her career in the ranked win. She finished one punchout shy of her career-best, 11, with 10 in the relief outing from Sue M. Daughtridge Stadium in Charlotte.
"Katie had great command and composure today – she made great adjustments from yesterday to today. These were big road wins and a series clinched."
The Hilltoppers climbed to 18-4 with the victory and 2-1 in C-USA play. Additionally, the Red and White now sit at 16-8 all-time against Charlotte.
Charlotte struck first in Sunday's finale, using a solo home run to get on the board in the bottom of the first.
The Hilltoppers responded right back in the top of the second by sending 12 batters to the plate for a 6-1 lead. WKU racked up five hits and three walks along with reaching on an error.
The 49ers retaliated in the bottom of the frame, scoring four runs to chase Shelby Nunn and bring Gardner out of the bullpen. Gardner would take over in the circle and deliver three-straight strikeouts to the 49ers to keep the Hilltoppers' lead intact at 6-5.
It would take three more innings for the score to change again from there as Charlotte took a 7-6 lead in the bottom of the fifth for the 49ers second lead of the game.
With two outs in the top of the sixth, Hage connected with a pitch on the 2-0 to send it over the right field fence for her first home run and the first tie of the game.
Charlotte led off the bottom of the frame with a single but on the next pitch the right side of the Hilltopper infield turned a double play to erase the runner. Gardner induced a grounder on the next batter and the Tops headed back to the dugout after facing the minimum.
Taylor Sanders drew a one-out walk in the top of the seventh and moved into scoring position on a base hit from Drinnon. A groundout by Abby Newman pushed both runners into scoring position with two outs. Back to the top of the order, TJ Webster reached on an error by the shortstop that allowed Sanders to score what would ultimately be the game-winning run for the 8-7 lead.
Charlotte stuck around in the bottom of the frame, including an intentional walk by the Tops to load the bases with 49ers. With Charlotte's 3-hole batter in the box, Gardner picked up her 10th strikeout with just three pitches securing the win for the Red and White.
Gardner improved to 4-2 on the season with the six-inning relief outing – her longest of the season. In 12.2 innings of relief work across three appearances this season, she's racked up 15 strikeouts against just eight hits allowed.
The Hilltoppers have now won six games in come-from-behind fashion this season.
WKU's last series win over ranked team came back in 2013 when the Tops did it at both No. 25 South Alabama and No. 15 Louisiana. Both were 2-1 series decisions.
COMPLETE WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Friday
2 p.m. – WKU def. No. 24 Charlotte, 4-2 [9]
Saturday
1 p.m. – No. 24 Charlotte def. WKU, 4-2
Sunday
11 a.m. – WKU def. No. 24 Charlotte, 8-7
TOP STORYLINES
- WKU moves to 16-8 all-time against Charlotte with the decision and 5-4 in games at the Sue M. Daughtridge Stadium.
- Coach Tudor is in her 18th season as a head coach – ninth on The Hill – and owns a 469-368-2 career coaching record. WKU is now 2-2 against teams receiving votes or ranked this season. WKU's last series win over ranked team came back in 2013 when the Tops did it at both No. 25 South Alabama and No. 15 Louisiana. Both were 2-1 series decisions.
- Brylee Hage connected for the first home run of her career in the win, becoming the sixth different Hilltopper to post a dinger on the season.
- Randi Drinnon recorded the first three-hit game of her career and second multi-hit outing.
- WKU registered double-digit hits for the eighth time this season in Sunday's win.
How to Follow Hilltopper Softball: For complete information on WKU Softball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUSoftball, Instagram @WKU_Softball and Facebook /WKUSoftball.
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