Carson-Newman, Lenoir-Rhyne Share Softball Championship

NEWBERRY, S.C. - The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles captured their 13th South Atlantic Conference title with a pair of wins at Newberry on Sunday afternoon. C-N held on for a tough 6-5 win in Game Two to win their first crown since 2005.

Carson-Newman improves to 42-6 overall and 12-2 in the SAC, sharing the SAC regular season title with Lenoir-Rhyne, who also finished 12-2. Newberry falls to 19-23 overall and 3-10 in the SAC.

GAME ONE: Carson-Newman 9, Newberry 1 (6 innings)
Newberry scored a run in the bottom of the sixth inning but it was too little to late as the Eagles run-ruled the Lady Indians 9-1 in six innings.

Carson-Newman pitcher Zoe Heim held Newberry to just four hits as the senior picked up her 25th win of the season (25-5).

The Eagles took a quick 2-0 lead in the top of the first as Jessie Howard scored on a wild pitch and Jessie Kuhlman scored on a Mandy Stevens RBI double to right field.

In the fourth inning, Carson-Newman extended its lead to 5-0 as Howard scored on a fielding error by Amy Jarrell (Dover, Del.) and Whitney Hickam and Kuhlman scored on a two-RBI single by Sara Little.

The Eagles picked up their final four runs of the game in the top of the sixth inning. Emily Hutchins drove in two runs with a bases loaded single and Whitney Kee and Howard each earned a bases loaded walks to give the Eagles a 9-0 lead.

In the bottom of the sixth, Sara Powell (Ocean View, Del.) walked and scored on a Kat Hammond (Irmo, S.C.) double. The Lady Indians could not sustain the rally though as Richelle Mirabal (Tampa, Fla.) struck out and Chelsie Hilbourn (Loris, S.C.) grounded out back to the pitcher to end the game.

Katelin Edwards (Greer, S.C.) earned the loss for Newberry after giving up nine runs on six hits and six walks in 5.1 innings. The freshman struck out five Eagles' batters to move into second place in the Newberry record books for strikeouts in a season with 139.

GAME TWO: Carson-Newman 6, Newberry 5
Newberry scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to pull to within one of the Eagles, but the Lady Indians could not push across the tying run as they fell 6-5.

Carson-Newman again jumped out to an early 2-0 first inning lead as Hickam and Stevens hit back-to-back homeruns off Newberry starter Kristen Hicks (Bamberg, S.C.).

The Eagles appeared to be on their way to their second run rule victory of the day in the second inning as they pushed their lead to 5-0. Hickam hit a bases loaded single to score two and Stevens followed with an RBI single herself to give Carson-Newman a five run lead.

The Lady Indians got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with two runs to make the score 5-2. Aissa Gatewood (N. Charleston, S.C.) and Powell got on base to lead off the inning before Hammond drove them in with a two-RBI double.

Carson-Newman got one of the two runs back in the top of the fifth with an RBI single by Hutchins.

In the bottom of the fifth, Powell pulled Newberry back within three with an RBI single to drive in Jarrell.

With the score still 6-3 in the bottom of the seventh inning; The Lady Indians put together a lat game rally to try and extend the game. Powell led off the inning with a ground-rule double to center and Hammond connected for a home run over the centerfield fence to pull the Lady Indians to within one with no outs in the inning.

Newberry could not get that final run though as Hilbourn hit into a fielder choice, Mirabal struck out and Jessica Teague (Charlotte, N.C.) grounded out to the pitcher to end the threat.

Hicks was charged with her fifth loss of the season as she gave up six runs on ten hits in seven innings. The sophomore falls to 7-5 on the year with the loss.

Lenoir-Rhyne Softball Sweeps Catawba, 5-3 And 7-1, To Clinch At Least A Share Of The SAC Regular Season Title

Bears win their third straight league title

Salisbury, N.C. - The No. 12 Lenoir-Rhyne College Softball Team (37-10, 12-2) clinched at least a share of the 2008 South Atlantic Conference Regular Season Championship with a doubleheader sweep of Catawba College (22-23, 4-10), 5-3 and 7-1, Saturday afternoon at Whitley Field in Salisbury, N.C.

L-R has now won three straight and four of the last five SAC Titles.

The Bears are also the top-ranked team in this week's NCAA Division II South Atlantic Region Poll.

Game One - Lenoir-Rhyne 5, Catawba 3 (nine innings)
With the score tied at three in the top of the ninth inning, L-R sophomore outfielder Brittany Cherry (Myrtle Beach, S.C./Carolina Forest HS) hit a two-out, two-run double to lift the Bears to the win.

The contest moved to extra innings with the score tied at two and each squad scored a run in the eighth frame before Cherry's game-winning hit in the ninth inning.

L-R senior Meredith O'Connor (Charlotte, N.C./Appalachian State Univ.) picked up the victory after allowing just two earned runs while striking out 10 batters.

Catawba's Meghan Cobb (Richmond, Va.) suffered the loss despite giving up just two runs to go along with eight strikeouts.

Game Two - Lenoir-Rhyne 7, Catawba 1
Bear senior centerfielder Taylor Queen (Conover, N.C./St. Stephens HS) hit a three-run home run in the third inning to give Lenoir-Rhyne a 4-0 advantage and senior catcher Karie Pushard (Harrisburg, N.C./Central Cabarrus HS) added a two-run double in the fourth inning to make it 6-0 as L-R cruised to the doubleheader sweep.

Catawba's lone run was scored on a solo home run by Sam Vidal (Huntersville, N.C.) in the seventh inning.

O'Connor improved to 27-7 with the win as she allowed just one run while striking out four batters.

Rachel Christian (Buckingham, Va.) fell to 7-8 with the loss.

At the plate, the Bears were led by redshirt freshman shortstop Kat Rivers (Royston, Ga./Grayson County HS), who went four-for-four, and junior second baseman Noel Belk (Charlotte, N.C./Queens Univ.), who finished three-for-three with two runs scored.