Duke Defeats Seton Hall, No. 18 South Carolina on Sunday

Sunday, February 28

Columbia, S.C.

9 a.m.

Duke University

11-1

Seton Hall

0-5

Duke

Seton Hall

Duke Defeats Seton Hall, No. 18 South Carolina on Sunday

2/28/2021 3:11:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Propelled by early run support, No. 16 Duke picked up two victories to close out the Gamecock Invitational as the Blue Devils defeated Seton Hall, 6-1, and topped No. 18 South Carolina, 5-1, on Sunday at the Carolina Softball Stadium.

Duke went undefeated on the weekend (4-0) to improve to 12-1 for the 2021 campaign while picking up its second win of the season over a ranked opponent.

Junior Deja Davis continued her hot streak at the plate, putting together a 4-for-6 performance with two doubles, a triple and a home run while tallying four RBI and scoring three runs. Sophomore Gisele Tapia also had a strong offensive performance, batting .500 with a triple, home run and three RBI.

The Blue Devils' pitching staff capped off an outstanding weekend as junior Shelby Walters and senior Peyton St. George notched their fifth and fourth wins, respectively. Duke utilized four pitchers on the day as junior Kylie Coffelt and Brianna Butler also saw action in the circle.

Duke 6, Seton Hall 1
Duke got off to an explosive start with four runs on four hits in the opening frame, including three doubles and a home run. Davis sent a leadoff double to the right center wall and was brought home on Tapia's two-run homer – her second of the season. Senior Jameson Kavel and junior Caroline Jacobsen both recorded an RBI double to give Duke an early 4-0 lead.

Davis and Tapia were at it again in the second inning, beginning with Davis' fourth triple of the season and an RBI single through the right side by Tapia (5-0). Senior Rachel Crabtree garnered a hit with an infield single to the pitcher, but the Blue Devils left her and Tapia on base to end the top half.

The Blue Devils made changes to their lineup in the third, as sophomore Kamryn Jackson entered the game and notched her first hit of the season with a double to left center. Freshman Francesca Frelick also made an appearance as she and junior Kyla Morris both reached base on a hit-by-pitch. Duke looked to add onto its lead but left the bases loaded, while Seton Hall added its lone run of the game in the bottom half (5-1).

Frelick, who made her debut behind the dish, garnered her first career hit, stolen base and run scored in the fifth inning. Graduate student Dominique Salinas reached third on a throwing error by the pitcher which scored Frelick to make it 6-1.

Due to a drop dead time of 11 a.m., Duke claimed the 6-1 victory through 6.2 innings. Walters improved to 4-0 with the victory, dealing 6.1 frames while racking up a season-high five strikeouts. Coffelt made her first appearance of the 2021 campaign, facing two batters in the fifth.

Duke 5, South Carolina 1
For the second straight game, Tapia notched a hit in her first at-bat with her first career triple and scored Duke's first run of the contest on an RBI single through the right side by Crabtree (1-0). South Carolina tallied its first hit in the bottom of the first, but a line drive to third stranded runners on the corners.

Torres sent a shot through the right side and a sacrifice bunt by Morris moved her to second. Davis launched a two-run shot over the wall in right field, registered her third home run of the season to expand Duke's lead to 3-0.

With a double rocketed to center field from Foreman, the Blue Devils looked to tack on another run, but a pop up would end the top of the third. Duke made a pitching change in the bottom half as St. George took over for Butler.

Following three scoreless innings, Davis sent a huge two-run double to the left field wall, scoring Jacobsen and Wilson to up Duke's advantage to 5-0 in the sixth. The Gamecocks scored their only run in the bottom of the seventh with a solo home run (5-1).

In the circle, St. George hurled five innings with six strikeouts en route to her fourth victory of the season. Butler, who earned the start, threw two innings in which she tallied three punchouts.

Notables

Seventeen Blue Devils saw action in the Seton Hall game.
Walters is off to the best start of her career with a 5-0 record – 4-0 in 2020 was previously her best start.
Tapia's 3 RBI versus Seton Hall were a career high.
Duke's four doubles against Seton Hall were tied for the most this season as the team also tallied four against Pitt on Feb. 20, 2021. The program record is six which has happened on two occasions (vs. Rutgers 2/15, vs. Campbell 2/19) last season.
With hits in all four games this weekend, Davis holds a 10-game hit streak and has recorded at least one hit in 23 of her last 24 games.

The Blue Devils return to action on Wednesday, March 3, with a 6 p.m. contest at Charlotte.

#GoDuke