No. 18 Tigers outlast Paladins in doubleheader sweep

Following a thrilling 3-2 walk off win in game one, Clemson came back in winning fashion to take game two by a score of 8-0. In the doubleheader sweep, the Tigers outscored the Paladins by eleven runs and were 7-for-7 in stolen bases. Clemson ace …

Following a thrilling 3-2 walk off win in game one, Clemson came back in winning fashion to take game two by a score of 8-0. In the doubleheader sweep, the Tigers outscored the Paladins by eleven runs and were 7-for-7 in stolen bases.

Clemson ace Valerie Cagle earned the win in the circle for the Tigers in game one and left-hander Millie Thompson tallied the win in game two for the first solo no-hitter of her career.

In the first of two games, Clemson was the first to strike. In the bottom of the first following back-to-back batters hit by pitch along with a walk to load the bases, Marissa Guimbarda was walked, scoring Cammy Pereira from third to give the Tigers the 1-0 lead.

Furman gave their answer in the fourth with infielder Natalie Morgan’s two-run homer to left field to put the Paladins up 2-1 through four. The Paladins held their lead into the seventh, but the Tigers struck with a vengeance to ultimately take the win thanks to Guimbarda’s two-run walk off home run for a final score of 3-2.

Clemson continued to stay hot at the plate into game two. The Tigers struck in the first once again, this time with McKenzie Clark scoring on the Paladin throwing error following Cagle’s single back to the pitcher.

The Tigers tacked on another two runs in the second all thanks to a monster home run to right field by Arielle Oda, the first of her career, for the 3-0 lead through two.

The third inning was huge for Clemson, scoring five more runs, good for a final score of 8-0 and the shutout win through five innings.

The Tigers are back in action this weekend, traveling to Pittsburgh for a three-game series versus the Panthers, good for their fifth ACC series of the season. Game one is scheduled for Friday, April 8, with first pitch scheduled for 5 p.m. on ACCN.