WINGATE, N.C. – No. 16 Wingate (42-11) got a two-out, second-inning grand slam from Savanna Brooks to get all the offense it would need for a 4-2 winner's bracket win in the SAC tournament over Carson-Newman (29-15) Friday afternoon at the WU Softball Complex.
Wingate advances to the winner's bracket finals, and can afford a loss in Saturday's action and still advance to the championship series. The Eagles face elimination at 10 a.m. Saturday against the winner of the Anderson/Newberry game. The Eagles would need to win three times Saturday to move on to the championship series.
"I thought Nicko again came in and did a great job," Carson-Newman head softball coach Michael Graves said. "She pitched good enough to win. We out hit them and played better defense. I can see why they were so difficult to beat at home.
"The same things are still occurring that have haunted us all year long in 90 percent of our losses. We walk people we definitely need to be pitching to and then give up a big hit to someone we shouldn't have had to face with runners on. We are having to see a team's best hitters more because of this. We will keep trying to resolve it, but it's definitely a point of emphasis before next year."
Wingate used the long ball to get on the board in the second. The Bulldogs loaded the bases with two outs thanks to two walks sandwiching a Danielle Kirchhofer double. Savanna Brooks took advantage, lining a grand slam off the scoreboard in left field off the first pitch she saw. The big blast gave Wingate a 4-0 lead.
C-N trimmed the deficit in half the next half inning. Abbi Martin (Gadsden. Ala.) and SieAnna Cameron (Alcoa, Tenn.) started the inning with base hits to right center and through the right side, respectively. The duo advanced into scoring position on a passed ball. After a strikeout and groundout, Brooke Matyasovsky (Orange, Conn.) bounced a ball deep into the hole at short. Matyasovsky legged out an RBI infield single before the shortstops throw caromed toward the dugout to score Cameron as well. The second unearned run made it a 4-2 Wingate edge.
The Eagles were just 3-for-16 with runners on base (.188) and 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position (.111). C-N had a runner on third with less than two out twice, and failed to get those runs in both times.
C-N had runners in scoring position in the fourth and seventh innings, but never could collect the timely hit to make further forays into the deficit.
Hayden Dye (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Martin both had multi-hit days for C-N. Kaylee Hobgood had a multi-hit day for the Bulldogs.
Syerra Rogers (Graysville, Tenn.) started and took the loss for C-N to fall to 8-5. She pitched the first 2.0 innings, surrendering two hits and four runs, all earned. Rogers walked four and fanned three.
NicKolette Ferguson (Erwin, Tenn.) finished the game for C-N, pitching the final four innings in three-hit shutout fashion.
Hali Scott got the win in relief for Wingate to move to 11-3 on the year. She pitched two innings, gave up four hits and two runs, only one earned.
Rachael Cutcher collected a 3.2-inning save. She gave up two hits and struck out four in her 3.2 shutout innings.
Carson-Newman will begin its action Saturday at 10 a.m. in an elimination game. Should the Eagles win that game, they would take on Wingate again at 12:30 p.m.
