Shealy picks up 100th career win, homers twice; Lady Eagles shutout Limestone on Senior Day

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman senior Mary Shealy pitched a pair of two-hit shutouts to pick up her 100^th career win, and hit two home runs in her final home games as the Lady Eagles sent their three seniors out in style in a sweep of visiting Limestone, 9-0 and 8-0.

Carson-Newman moves to 31-20 on the season and will face Tusculum on Thursday in the first round of the 2012 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Softball Tournament. First pitch is at 10:30 a.m. in Greeneville, Tenn.

The two wins for Shealy give her 100 pitching victories for her Carson-Newman career. She has 31 this season and had 38 as a junior, which led the nation.

Game 1 – Carson-Newman 9, Limestone 0 (5 inn.)

Shealy limited the Saints to a pair of singles and C-N outhit Limestone, 12-3, en route to a five-inning shutout in the opener, 9-0.

C-N started slow, chipping away at the Saints before scoring seven runs in their final two at-bats to overwhelm the Saints.

The Lady Eagles jumped to a 2-0 lead in the second inning as C-N began to slap at Limestone starter Shelby Webb. Mary Shealy reached on an infield single and Sara Kelley singled to left to start the C-N offense.

A line-drive single through the left side from Jessica Morgan loaded the bases for Bethany Davis, who walked to plate C-N's first run. Cassidy Skeen added an RBI single to right to score Kelley with C-N's second run as C-N finessed its way to four hits in the inning.

C-N's big sticks came to life in the third inning as C-N broke the game open. Shealy hit her fifth home run of the season to left centerfield to score Bri Shoemake. Shoemake had a sharply hit single to lead off the inning.

Sara Kelley followed with a double down the left field line and Morgan added her second single of the day as C-N pushed the lead to 7-0.

Kim Whaley laced a two-run triple into the gap in right center as C-N added two more runs in the fourth. Caitlin Lance had her first single in the game as C-N put the opener out of reach.

Shealy limited Limestone to three singles, while striking out three in just five innings of work.  

Game 2 – Carson-Newman 8, Limestone 0 (6 inn.)

Shealy picked up her 100^th career win in style, firing a two-hitter and blasting one of the longest home runs of the season at the Lady Eagles Softball Complex in her final home at-bat. C-N again had too much for the Saints, outhitting their opponent 10-2, including three home runs.

C-N started small again in the second game to take an early lead. Shealy's squeeze bunt scored Shelby Robertson who drew a one-out walk. A single by Shoemake and a sacrifice fly from Whaley gave C-N a 2-0 lead through an inning.

Shoemake added to her impressive doubleheader in the fifth. After a walk to Bethany Davis, Shoemake dilled her fourth home run of the season into the trees in left to make it 4-0.

The day, however, belonged to Shealy. She hit the first pitch in the bottom of the sixth over the secondary fence in centerfield for her second home run of the day. The blast was her third this week after a hitting the eventual game-winner on Wednesday against Mars Hill. She has 27 home runs for her career.

Kelley added a two-run home run late in the inning as C-N ballooned its lead to 7-0. She scored Whaley who doubled in her final at-bat at home.

Shealy finished the doubleheader 4-for-6 with two home runs and four RBIs. Shoemake was 4-for-7 with four RBIs and four runs scored.

All three Lady Eagle seniors reached base in their final at-bat, led by Shealy's home run and Whaley's double.

Limestone's Leah Quant had two sharply hit singles for the Saints only two hits.

-C-N-