Lady Eagles take two from Lincoln Memorial, 9-0 and 4-3
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. — The Carson-Newman softball team swept Lincoln Memorial in a South Atlantic Conference doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon. The Lady Eagles shut out the Railsplitters, 9-0, in five innings in game one and completed the sweep by holding on for a 4-3 victory in the second contest.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. — The Carson-Newman softball team swept Lincoln Memorial in a South Atlantic Conference doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon. The Lady Eagles shut out the Railsplitters, 9-0, in five innings in game one and completed the sweep by holding on for a 4-3 victory in the second contest.
With the sweep, the Lady Eagles improve to 27-10-1 overall and 5-1 in the conference. Lincoln Memorial drops to 21-16 on the season and 2-6 in SAC play.
In the first game, junior pitcher Mary Shealy (Clinton, S.C.) fired a two-hitter, and the Lady Eagles erupted for four runs in the first inning on their way to a 9-0 win in five innings.
Shealy worked all five innings and had two strikeouts to claim her fifth straight victory.
Senior Whitney Kee (Knoxville, Tenn.) led the Lady Eagles at the plate with a pair of hits, including a solo home run. Freshman Dariayn Wright (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) and Shealy also had two hits apiece in the win.
Bridget Eicher (Hicksville, Ohio) and Ashley Knight (Palm Harbor, Fla.) each had a hit for the Railsplitters.
Lincoln Memorial starting hurler Cierra Mudd (Washburn, Tenn.) (10-8) was tagged with the loss after allowing eight earned runs on nine hits in four innings in the circle.
The Lady Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first. A Kee RBI single gave C-N its first run. Kim Whaley (Maryville, Tenn.) added a two-run single, and Shealy also scored on an error to give the Lady Eagles a four-run advantage.
C-N pushed across two more runs in the third, as Amy Lawrence (Knoxville, Tenn.) delivered a pinch-hit RBI single and Amber Hewitt (Ringgold, Ga.) drew a bases loaded walk to bring home Sara Kelley (Birchwood, Tenn.) for a 6-0 lead.
C-N put the game away in the fourth with a three-run outburst. Kee led off the inning with a solo home run to center field, and Hewitt later delivered a two-run double to left field to give C-N a 9-0 cushion.
In the second game, the Lady Eagles built a 4-0 lead through six innings and held off a seventh-inning rally by the Railsplitters to claim a 4-3 victory.
Shealy (24-8) had another solid outing for C-N. The reigning SAC Pitcher of the Week surrendered three runs on five hits and had five strikeouts in seven innings in the circle.
Lincoln Memorial starting pitcher Katie-Jo Gentry (Calhoun, Ga.) also pitched well despite picking up the loss. Gentry (5-7) gave up three earned runs and five hits and fanned six batters in six innings of work.
Senior Leah Price (Spring City, Tenn.) went 2-for-2 to lead the Lady Eagles, while Wright had a three-run inside the park home run.
Eicher finished with two hits for Lincoln Memorial.
C-N broke a scoreless tie in the third inning with three runs. After Caitlyn Lance (East Ridge, Tenn.) and Price singled, Wright smashed a line drive to left center and raced around the base pads for an inside the park home run to give the Lady Eagles a 3-0 lead.
Price scored on a sacrifice bunt by Hewitt in the fifth to give C-N a 4-0 cushion.
However, the Railsplitters made things interesting in the seventh. Eicher drew a walk to lead off the inning, and Brittany Stuive (Portland, Texas) then roped a double to right field to drive in Stuive. Knight then singled, and Stuive scored on an error by C-N to trim the Lady Eagles' lead to 4-2. Knight later scored as she beat the throw home when Krisha Mahan (Rogersville, Tenn.) reached on a fielder's choice to pull the Railsplitters to within 4-3, but the Lady Eagles recorded outs in the next three at bats to seal the win.
C-N returns to action on Saturday at Lenoir-Rhyne. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. in Hickory, N.C.
