BOCA RATON, Fla. - Charleston Southern struggled to get going on offense in two losses at the Parent's Weekend Tournament, dropping a 5-2 loss vs. Syracuse and a 9-0 loss vs. Florida Atlantic Saturday, at the FAU Softball Stadium. The Bucs posted just six combined hits through two games and were shutout for the second time of the year in a run rule game vs. FAU. CSU dropped to 12-11-1 with the losses and 0-6 at neutral sites.

Kristin Kelleher tallied a pair of hits on the day, registering the only extra base hit and only RBIs for the Bucs. Megan Lombard also posted two hits, as the only CSU player to record a hit vs. FAU.

In game one, the Orange got on the board first, posting a pair of runs after three hits in the inning. Two hits put runners at first and third, before Lacey Kohl had a bases clearing double to give Syracuse an early 2-0 advantage.

CSU struggled to get the bats going, with just four hits in the game. Jenna Caira started in the circle for the Orange, holding the Bucs in check for five innings, with no runs and nine strikeouts in that time.

CSU had a runner in scoring position in the third, after Melissa Adams singled and advanced to second on a passed ball. Despite just one out, the Bucs couldn't generate any offense after a strikeout and groundout would end the inning.

Syracuse added three more to their lead in the bottom of the fifth, using two hits and a pair of walks to go up 5-0. After a lead off single, CSU had two outs in the inning, but a walk put two runners on for the Orange. From there, the Bucs elected to intentionally walk Halie Gibbs to load the bases. Kohl made CSU pay again, posting her second bases clearing double of the game to give Syracuse a commanding lead.

The Bucs tried to rally in the top of the sixth, recording two runs after two walks and a hit. Lombard and Hall each reached base with walks to start the inning, putting two on with no outs. A groundout advanced both runners, before Kristin Kelleher had a timely two RBI double to put CSU on the board.

The runs for the Bucs proved to be too little too late however, as the Orange managed to hang on for the 5-2 win. CSU had a pair of strikeouts in a one, two, three inning in the seventh, to seal the win for Syracuse.

Caira picked up the win for the Orange, throwing five innings and allowing just three hits and no earned runs. Sondra Vetter took the loss for the Bucs and dropped to 5-5, after allowing six hits and five earned runs, while striking out five.

Game One Box

Game two was all FAU, with CSU tallying just two hits and committing two errors before ending the game in six innings.

The Bucs failed to register a hit in the first two innings, before the Owls exploded for five runs in the bottom of the second. Along with four hits in the inning, back-to-back extra base this for FAU scored four runs, before a fielding error had the Owls on top 5-0.

CSU had a chance to get back in the game in the third, with bases loaded and just one out. Courtney Konyck started things off with a lead-off walk, followed by a Lombard single and Megan Hall reaching on an error. The Bucs couldn't produce any runs however, after a strikeout and popup ended the inning.

CSU had just one more runner on base with a Lombard single in the fifth, but the Bucs were unable to take advantage.

The Owls ended things early with four more runs in the bottom of the sixth, to take a 9-0 win after the run rule. FAU had four hits in the inning, along with two Buccaneer miscues, capping the game off with a two RBI double to end the game.

Kathryn Staufer picked up the win to improve to 4-2 on the season, after throwing a two-hit shutout in six innings, while striking out seven. Caitlin Allen received the loss and dropped to 3-1, allowing six hits and four earned runs in one inning of work.

Game Two Box

CSU will play two more games tomorrow, starting with Virginia Tech at 11 a.m., before facing Jacksonville at 1 p.m.