The Cougars mustered one hit through the first three innings, but a three-run fourth inning propelled UH to a 4-2 victory over Southern Miss in the opening round of the Conference USA Tournament on Thursday.
The Golden Eagles (17-38, 4-20 C-USA) responded with two runs of their own off of starter Donna Bourgeois (16-6, 1.68 ERA), but were shut down when Amanda Crabtree came in and struck out the first two batters she faced.
Crabtree (18-7, 0.91 ERA) was dominant in relief, striking out seven of the nine batters that she faced in 2 2/3 innings to earn her second save of the season.
In addition to earning the victory for 4 1/3 innings of work, Bourgeois also picked up the C-USA Newcomer of the Year award before the game. Bourgeois, who transferred from Louisiana-Lafayette, finished in the top ten in C-USA in ERA, batting average against (.197), innings (141.1), strikeouts (126) and wins. It was the first time a UH player had won the award.
Bourgeois was not the only Cougar who gained C-USA recognition. Melissa Gregson earned C-USA Player of the Year for her productive season. Gregson led the conference in home runs (16), total bases (101) and tied for the lead in RBI (43).
The Cougars will be in action again at 3:30 p.m. today to take on host East Carolina (37-20, 14-10) in Greenville, N.C. In their most recent matchup two weeks ago, UH swept the Pirates, outscoring them 14-3 over the three games. The game can be followed online through Game Tracker at www.uhcougars.com.