BANNER ELK, N.C – Megan Powell connected on her second grand slam this season and finished with a season-high seven RBIs in game one, while
Lauren Ritchie and
Rylie Webster combined for three home runs, with Ritchie hitting two home runs, and eight RBIs in game two, and both Powell and
Jada Wilson posted victories in the circle for the Bobcats, to lead the Lees-McRae softball team to their first sweep of North Greenville in program history with an 11-5 win in game one and a 9-4 win in game two in the Conference Carolinas twin bill this afternoon.
GAME #1 BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Lees-McRae – 11; North Greenville – 5
LOCATION: Softball Field – Banner Elk, North Carolina
RECORDS: Lees-McRae (15-22/9-10), North Greenville (17-22/9-6)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Powell went 2 for 3 from the plate in the opening game with a double, a grand slam, and a game-high seven RBIs, while Julie Gast and Hannah Foster went 3 for 3 and 3 for 4 from the dish respectively and tallied a combined three RBIs, a double, and four runs scored.
- Jordyn Scott went 2 for 3 with an RBI, a stolen base, and two runs scored, while Aliyah Compton tallied a hit, a stolen base, and two runs scored.
- Ritchie and Wilson also scored a run for the Bobcats.
- North Greenville opened the scoring with a single run on a hit in the top of the first inning to take the early lead.
- Lees-McRae responded in the bottom of the inning as Gast singled up the middle to score Compton and Foster doubled to left field to score Gast and give the Bobcats a 2-1 lead.
- After the Crusaders reclaimed a 3-2 lead in the top of the third, Powell doubled in the bottom of the third to score Scott, Foster, and Gast to give Lees-McRae a 5-3 lead.
- North Greenville scored a run in the top of the fourth to trim the deficit to 5-4.
- Lees-McRae extended the lead back to 7-4 in the bottom of the fourth as Foster singled to left field to score Wilson and Scott hit a sacrifice fly to score Compton.
- Powell pushed the lead to 11-4 on a two-out grand slam, with Ritchie, Scott, and Gast all scoring, in the bottom of the sixth.
- The Crusaders connected on a home run in the top of the seventh, but Lees-McRae collected the final three groundouts to clinch the Conference Carolinas victory.
- Jada Wilson picked up the win by giving up two earned runs on two hits in four innings of work, while Powell gave up three earned runs on three hits in three innings to start the game.
FOR THE FOES:
- Brianna McRae collected multiple hits in the early game to pace the Crusaders.
- Bailey Pace gave up 11 earned runs on 11 hits in six innings of work.
GAME #2 BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Lees-McRae – 9; North Greenville – 4
LOCATION: Softball Field – Banner Elk, North Carolina
RECORDS: Lees-McRae (16-22/10-10), North Greenville (17-23/9-7)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Ritchie went 2 for 3 from the plate with two home runs, four RBIs, and two runs scored, while Webster went 1 for 3 with a home run, four RBIs, and a run scored.
- Powell went 3 for 3 from the dish with a double and a run scored, with Gast going 2 for 4 in the contest.
- Emma Jackson went 2 for 3 with an RBI, a double, and two runs scored, while Scott and Foster combined for a hit and two runs scored.
- After a scoreless first four innings, North Greenville used a two-run home run in the top of the fifth to open up the scoring.
- Ritchie opened the bottom of the fifth inning with a solo home run to cut the lead to 2-1, with Webster hitting a three-run home run a few batters later to give Lees-McRae a 4-2 lead, with Jackson and Meredith Summey scoring on the hit.
- After holding the Crusaders scoreless in the top of the sixth, the Bobcats used a three-run home run by Ritchie in her next at-bat, which makes her only the second Bobcat this season with two home runs in a single game, to extend the lead to 7-2.
- Jackson doubled to left field to score Powell from first base and Webster grounded out to score Jackson from third base to push the lead to 9-2.
- North Greenville scored two final runs in the top of the seventh, but Lees-McRae was able to collect the final two outs to clinch the conference sweep.
- Powell earned the victory in the circle by giving up only two earned runs on three hits in 2.1 innings of work, while Wilson started game two and gave up two earned runs on four hits in 4.2 innings of work.
FOR THE FOES:
- Jenna Hewes collected multiple hits in game two to pace the Crusaders.
- Hailey Wells and Wynter Radcliffe gave up seven earned runs on 11 hits in the circle for North Greenville.
UP NEXT:
The Bobcats will host Emory & Henry in a non-conference match on Monday, April 18 at 1 p.m.
For more information on Lees-McRae Athletics, follow the Bobcats on Twitter (@LMCBobcats), on Facebook (Lees-McRae Athletics), and on Instagram (leesmcraeathletics).
