C-N hops out of conference for Wednesday doubleheader at Erskine
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (27-7, 8-0 South Atlantic Conference) hops out of SAC play for a nonconference doubleheader at Erskine (10-18, 4-6 Conference Carolinas) in Due West, S.C. at 2 p.m.
Game 1
Game 1
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
Game 2
Game 2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 1 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
The Eagles are riding a 13-game winning streak, the 10th longest in school history and the longest active streak in the Southeast Region.
Erskine played the role of spoiler when the teams got together for a Feb. 22 doubleheader. The Eagles took game one via the run-rule 10-2 to win a ninth straight game before the Fleet tallied up eight unanswered runs for an 8-2 win in the night cap to keep Carson-Newman from a double-digit win streak.
The Flying Fleet has dropped five of its last six contests, all in conference play.
"She (Erskine head coach Alleen Hawkins) will have her team ready to play ball," head softball coach Vickee Kazee-Hollifield said. "Carson-Newman and Erskine is a great rivalry. They are a good ball club that has been in every ball game that they have played."
The Eagles split the last doubleheader they played in Due West in 2016. Danica Newton no-hit the Eagles in the opener before C-N rallied for a 4-2 triumph in the night cap.
The Fleet grabbed their only sweep in series history in 2015, downing Carson-Newman 5-4 and 2-0.
The Eagles last picked up a sweep of Erskine in Due West in 2014 when Kailyn Davis tossed a perfect game and the Eagles grabbed 9-1 and 2-0 wins.
C-N has outscored its opponents 122-15 on its win streak. The Eagles have a 0.70 team ERA on the win streak while limiting opponents to a .178 batting average.
Erskine has one of the top defensive teams in the country. The Fleet has a .973 fielding percentage that ranks as the top mark in Conference Carolinas and the 13th best mark in the nation. Erskine had a dropped fly ball in center as the lone error of the doubleheader versus Carson-Newman in February.
The Eagles feature the reigning South Atlantic Conference Pitcher and Player of the Week.
Rinus snagged her fifth double-digit strikeout performance of the season against Mars Hill and her fifth shutout against Catawba.
The freshman started out her week in the circle with a complete game against Mars Hill. She struck out 10 Lions on the day and gave up two runs, surrendering seven hits. She didn't walk a batter on the day.
The Murfreesboro, Tenn.-native followed up that effort up with a complete-game, five-hit shutout of Catawba. Rinus didn't let an Indian past second base on the day, striking out six.
Rinus tallied a 1.08 ERA for the week and struck out 16 total batters against five walks. Additionally, Rinus had a decent week at the plate. She went 7-for-16 for a .438 average with two doubles, a triple and four runs batted in.
Scott successfully reached base in 12 consecutive plate appearances and tallied seven consecutive hits to close out her week (streaks that came to an end Monday against Brevard).
The freshman tallied her team-leading eighth and ninth multi-RBI efforts and her ninth and 10th multi-hit efforts for the season in guiding C-N to sweeps of Mars Hill and Catawba.
Scott was only 8-for-10 at the plate with a double and a dinger for the week. She got on base 87.5 percent of the time she came to the plate, climbing aboard four times on the week on bases on balls and two more times when she got hit.
Scott slugged a pedestrian 1.200 for the week and didn't make an error in the field.
First pitch between the Eagles and Fleet is set for 2 p.m. Follow @cnathletics on Twitter for live in-game updates.
