Softball falls in tournament opener

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee softball dropped their opening-round contest 10-3 to host Louisiana-Lafayette in the first day of competition at the 2011 Sun Belt Conference Championships.

Middle Tennessee (18-32) scored first in the top of the second off a RBI-double from Kristi Marquez, but the Cajuns answered back with five runs of their own to move ahead 5-1. Sarah Draheim brought in two with a home run over the left center wall, followed by a two-RBI double from Christi Orgeron and another RBI from Gabriele Bridges.

Freshman Jordyn Fisherback would see her first action in over a month as she relieved starter Janele Robinson. Fisherback would give up five unearned runs off seven hits in three innings of work. Robinson would take the loss as she moved to 6-13 on the year.

The Blue Raiders started to chip into the Cajuns' lead after Christina Hamilton allowed an Kelsey Woodruff to score unearned in the third.

Louisiana would put the game out of reach in the fifth when they scored four off three hits. MT fell 10-3 in the final.

"It was a close competitive game for most of the contest," head coach Sue Nevar said. "We thought we had a chance at an upset, but it was not to be. Jordyn came in and threw well for a stint in her first appearance in over a month."

Middle Tennessee will play FIU at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday in an elimination matchup. Post-game coverage will be available on GoBlueRaiders.com.

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