Boxscore

BATON ROUGE, La. - Louisiana Tech won a pair of games during the first day of the LSU Purple and Gold Challenge Friday blanking Southern Mississippi 4-0 in the afternoon before downing Alcorn State 8-0 in the nightcap.

Tech (7-5) received a strong pitching performance in game No. 1 to down the Golden Eagles (3-5) as senior pitcher Marla Pinkston recorded a complete game four-hitter to pick up her fourth win of the season.

The game was scoreless until the top of the fourth inning when senior catcher Erin Chernicky recorded a one-out single. Junior outfielder Brittany Stanley followed with an RBI triple to give the Lady Techsters a 1-0 advantage. Junior outfielder Amber Miles made the score 2-0 on a run-scoring double, and one out later, senior shortstop Casey Reiff hit a two-run home run over the center field wall, her second of the season.

Southern Miss tried to answer in the bottom of the fifth inning. With one out, freshman Sue Logan recorded a single through the left side and then moved to second when Charity Butler drew a walk. However, Pinkston (4-4) retired the next two batters and got out of the inning without allowing a run.

Miles led Tech's eight-hit attack with a pair of hits and her fifth stolen base of the season.

Against Alcorn State (2-2), Tech scored three runs in the bottom of the first inning and added three more in the third, one in the fourth and one in the fifth as the game was called due to the eight-run rule.

Freshman Jessica Elson led Tech with a pair of doubles and drove in three runs while Miles added two more hits and scored two runs. Christine Echols hit her first career home run for the Techsters, a solo shot in the fourth inning.

Sabra Warner (2-0) recorded the win for Tech, hurling 3.1 innings while allowing only one hit and one walk. Sophomore Kristin Rupp came on in relief of Warner in the fourth inning, retiring four batters while surrendering one hit and a walk.

Tech returns to action Saturday facing Texas-San Antonio at 11:30 a.m. and then playing No. 13 ranked LSU at 7 p.m.