No. 23 C-N erases four-run deficit late to sweep Emory & Henry on Wednesday
Facing its largest deficit of the season at 4-0 in the fourth, No. 23 Carson-Newman (37-8, 16-4 SAC) balled its fists up to pick up a come-from-behind win in game two and sweep Emory & Henry (24-20, 8-10 SAC).
Game 1
Game 1
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
|
|
4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 6 | 13 | 0 |
Game 2
Game 2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | X | 6 | 10 | 1 |
VIDEO: Michael Graves Interview
VIDEO: Anne Marie Richards Interview
VIDEO: Katey Mathena Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Facing its largest deficit of the season at 4-0 in the fourth, No. 23 Carson-Newman (37-8, 16-4 SAC) balled its fists up to pick up a come-from-behind win in game two and sweep Emory & Henry (24-20, 8-10 SAC).
Michael Graves' team took early control in game one with four runs in the bottom of the first, and two in the second, and cruised to a 6-2 win. However, in game two, the Wasps flipped the script and seized early momentum, but six unanswered runs, including four in the sixth, propelled the Eagles to a gritty sweep.
"I think coming out in game one was key. Held them there in the first inning, Abbi [Martin] made a great play to save runs, and then we come out and score a bunch of runs in the first, and more in the second," Graves said. "Second game, not so much. We had some dugout issues, field issues and we addressed them afterwards. Hopefully that doesn't rear its head again, because this team is too talented to let things like that happen."
With the sweep, Carson-Newman has now won 15 consecutive contests, the longest winning streak since 2017, when it won 17 straight. It has also swept the last six SAC doubleheaders and has 13 straight victories in conference play.
The 37 wins this season are the most for the Eagles, also since 2017, when they went 43-13 overall.
C-N has a chance to win the SAC Regular Season Championship on the final day of the season on April 25th against the top team in the SAC, Lenoir-Rhyne. Anderson is also in the mix as it is tied with the Eagles in second place.
"If you said that we were going to be sitting in this situation after the first week of SAC play, I would've been like, 'man, I don't know how you see that,'" Graves said. "But we've played good enough down the stretch to put ourselves in that position. So now the rest of it is up to us. It's whether we want it more than they do."
Game One: Carson-Newman 6, Emory & Henry 2
A scoreless top of the first from Atiana Stamper (Knoxville, Tenn.), headlined by a spectacular grab by Abbi Martin (Gadsden, Ala.), gave way to a hot start with the bats for Carson-Newman.
Martin delivered the first and swiped second, with two outs, she came into score on a single from Grace Gregory (White House, Tenn.), the first of four straight base hits, to open the gates. An infield single from Addie Saunders (Radford, Va.) was followed by an RBI single from Anne Marie Richards (Spring Hill, Tenn.) and then a two-run single from Sarah Walker (Mills River, N.C.), 4-0.
After a pair of strikeouts in the second, the Eagles gave more run support for their freshman pitcher.
Back-to-back singles from Shelby Armstrong (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Malyiah Smith (Knoxville, Tenn.) put runners on the corner. After a Smith stolen base, Gregory came back up with two outs and produced one again with a 2-RBI single up the middle, 6-0.
That was all the offense Carson-Newman got, but it was able to control the rest of the way thanks to the pitching combination of Stamper, Lacey Keck (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Riley Sikes (Powell, Tenn.).
Emory & Henry avoided a shutout with two runs in the sixth. A solo home run from Sawyer Tolley, her 13th of the season, and then an RBI double from Karen Simpson, 6-2.
Stamper went four innings, striking out six batters and allowing just two hits. In her first appearance since March 26th, Sikes retired all five batters she faced.
On offense, Gregory led the way with a 2-for-3, 3 RBI outing, while Richards tied her career-best mark with three hits, driving in one run.
"I made sure to get back in the cage about every spare second I had the past two weeks," Richards said. "I've managed to hit the middle of the ball a lot, and I'm seeing pitches a lot better. I really worked hard so that I could produce, and I'm really happy that I was able to."
Game Two: Carson-Newman 6, Emory & Henry 4
For game two, Graves trotted out the exact same lineup as Stamper got the ball, starting both games of the doubleheader for the first time this season. However, the second contest did not go as smoothly for the freshman.
Emory & Henry left runners on in the first and second innings before striking first in the third.
A lead-off hit by pitch for Rachel Hill put her on, before she advanced to second on a wild pitch. The Wasps capitalized on a double to left by Abigail Street to score Hill. Then two batters later, Sawyer Tolley smoked her second home run of the day, a two-run shot on her league-leading 14th long ball of the season, 3-0.
Stamper's day was done after three innings, being replaced by Lorelei Spradlin (Blacksburg, Va.). The Wasps scored in the fourth against the sophomore on an infield single from Abigail Street to score Kali Cook, 4-0, matching the largest deficit this season for C-N.
The Eagles cut into the lead as the first three in the inning reached, singles from Macauley Bailey (Cross Plains, Tenn.) and Grace Gregory, with Addie Saunders reaching on a fielder's choice. A fielder's choice from Anne Marie Richards scored Bailey to get on the board. Followed by a seeing-eye single from Katey Mathena (Blacksburg, Va.), who drove in Gregory to cut the lead in half, 4-2.
Two straight shutdown frames in the fifth and sixth from Spradlin gave more life to the Eagles, who took the lead in the bottom of the sixth.
A lead-off double from Gregory and a Saunders single kick-started the offense. Richards paid off the hot start with her second RBI of the game on a single, plating Gregory. A sacrifice bunt from Sarah Walker put the tying and go-ahead run in scoring position, setting the stage for Mathena. The sophomore showed off the clutch gene with a single up the middle to score Saunders. The Eagles took the lead as Richards raced home to score on a wild pitch. The four-run sixth was capped off by a sacrifice fly from Shelby Armstrong, 6-4.
It marked the 11th time this season that Carson-Newman has taken the lead in the sixth or later.
A 1-2-3 top of the seventh from Spradlin handed the Eagles their 15th straight win and the sweep. Spradlin went the final four innings, allowing just one run on one hit and striking out four as she eclipsed 100 career strikeouts.
"Lorelei came into this game and came in with intent. Her pitches were moving, she was mad, she was throwing hard, just seeing red," Richards said. "Lorelei is one of the best pitchers I've ever caught, and to see her ball move the way it did today, I was really proud of her."
As for Spradlin's high school teammate and friend since childhood, Katey Mathena went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBIs. She said her game two was a byproduct of her hard work throughout the season and this team's endless fight.
"Strike zone knowledge, as coach Graves harps on all the time, but also trusting myself and having the confidence that I can do what is needed for the team," Mathena said. "We could have given up and called it a day, but we showed a lot of grit."
Richards followed her three-hit game one performance with a 2-for-3, two RBI contest. It's the first time since March 18th that she has had back-to-back multi-hit games, and the first time since February 18th she has had consecutive games with multiple RBI.
Carson-Newman's next game is in 10 days, when it hosts Senior Day against No. 18 Lenoir-Rhyne in the regular-season finale on April 25th. The Bears and Eagles are separated by one game at the top of the SAC standings. Game one in Jefferson City, Tennessee, is set for 1:00 p.m. at the Vickee Kazee-Hollifield Softball Complex. Fans can watch the game on FloSports with a subscription, listen to the game on cneagles.com/live or watch the In The Booth cam on the Carson-Newman Eagle Sports Network YouTube Channel.
