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Shipman’s RBI single in the fourth tied the game after the Pride trailed 1-0 against the Akron Racers. Photo courtesy of Kit Mohr
Akron, OH – July 7, 2015 –The USSSA Florida Pride defeated the Akron Racers  in game one of a would-be double header in Akron, Ohio with a final score of 4-1. Due to inclement weather, game two was cancelled and re-scheduled for July 8th.
The morning game against Akron got off to a rocky start for the Pride, as the Racers were the first to score.  Two errors committed by the Pride defense would be enough to allow the hungry Racers bats to string together a couple of hits and scratch a run in the first inning.
The scoring would end there until the former Oklahoma powerhouse duo of Lauren Chamberlain and Shelby Pendley  got the ball rolling in the bottom of the 4th inning.  Chamberlain singled to right center before being pinch-ran for by Breja’e Washington.  A Shelby Pendley single to right field advanced Washington to 3rd and put herself in scoring position on the throw.  An RBI single by Madison Shipman scored Washington and the Pride would tie the game at one. Following the first run scored, Courtney Ceo’s RBI scored Pendley and the Pride would scratch the go-ahead run, 2-1.
Cat Osterman  rendered the Racers scoreless in the top of the 5th before the Pride would tack on another insurance run in the bottom half. GiOnna DiSalvatore reached on a fielder’s choice and a 2-out double to left off the bat of Shelby Pendley scored DiSalvatore for the third run of the game. Pendley went 3 for 3 against the Racers with 1 RBI and a double.
Chelsea Goodacre and Kelly Kretschman would join for the final RBI duo of the game.  A single to left field by Kretschman would score Goodacre in the bottom half of the 6th giving the Pride a 4-1 lead that the Racers wouldn’t recover from.
Jordan Taylor saw one inning of relief after Osterman’s 9 K’s in 6 innings. Osterman improves to 6-2 with the win and Taylor now stands with 6 saves on the season. With this win against the Racers, the USSSA Pride improve to 13-6.
Final Score: Pride: 4 Racers: 1
Records: Pride: (13-6)  Racers: (12-12)
With yesterday’s game two cancellation of the originally scheduled double header, the USSSA Pride and the Akron Racers will instead face off twice tonight July 8th. Game 1 of the newly scheduled DH will be played at 4:00 PM (ET) and Game 2 will be played at its regularly scheduled time of 7:05 PM (ET).
For all information about the USSSA Pride and the 2015 National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) season, visit the team website www.dev.usssapride.com and follow the Pride all season long on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
About USSSA Florida Pride:
The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.
National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Nashville, TN. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL). NPF is the Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball in the category of women’s fastpitch softball since 2002.
USSSA is headquartered in Osceola County, Florida. USSSA is the World’s Largest Multi-sport Athletic Organization. Founded in 1968, USSSA has grown to over 3.7 million participants, competing in 13 nationally sanctioned sports including Baseball, Fastpitch, Slow Pitch, Karate, Basketball, Soccer and more! For more information on USSSA and to register your team visit USSSA.com. Also be sure to visit USSSAToday.com for the latest USSSA.
Cat Osterman,Courtney Ceo,GiOnna DiSalvatore,Jordan Taylor,Kelly Kretschman,Madison Shipman,Shelby Pendley