VIDEO: Vickee Kazee-Hollifield Interview
VIDEO: Bre Lockett Interview
VIDEO: Hayley Burnette Interview
VIDEO: Highlights
Carson-Newman earned a 9-1 win in six innings over the Pioneers in game one before rallying twice to the 7-6 win in game two on the back of Burnette's heroics.
"What an exciting day," head coach Vickee Kazee-Hollifield said. "It's been a fun year, I'm so thrilled for our team, especially for our three seniors. This team just has the heart to win."
With the wins, the Eagles can do no worse than a share of the 2015 South Atlantic Conference regular season title. A win against Queens Sunday, or a loss by Anderson against either Brevard Friday, or Coker Saturday and the Eagles will be guaranteed their first outright league championship since 2005. Carson-Newman shared the regular season championship with Lenoir-Rhyne in 2009.
On top of that, Carson-Newman set a new school record for conference wins in a single season with 16.
"Our theme has been stick with what we are doing," Kazee-Hollifield said. "The parity in our conference is second to none. To win as many conference games as we have, I'm very proud. But I'm more proud that they've gotten better throughout the season. My goal for my teams is to have us playing for a championship, and that's what this year's group has done."
Bre Lockett (Fontana, Calif.) led the Carson-Newman offense with six consecutive hits to start the doubleheader. She drove in a pair of runs and went 6-for-8 at the plate. Elayna Siebert (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Lindsay Dean (Coeburn, Va.) each drilled home runs for C-N.
"There's no question we're playing better ball right now," Kazee-Hollifield said. "We're hitting one through nine, there's no set pattern to it. The good thing is that they are still hungry. They are elated and happy, but they want to win the title outright with two more victories."
Sarah Howard (Georgetown, Ky.) earned the win in both games. She got the complete game win in the first contest before retiring all 10 batters she faced in order in game two to move to 8-4 on the year with the win in relief.
"Sarah was tremendous under such pressure," Kazee-Hollifield said. "It wasn't our greatest pitching outing, but she gives the defense a sense of calmness. That was the time to get Sarah in and she did the job to shut them down."
Game one: Carson-Newman 9, Tusculum 1
Tusculum scored a run in the top of the third before the Eagles rattled off nine unanswered to win game one in walk-off, run-rule fashion in six innings for the sixth time this season.
C-N tied the game quickly in the bottom of the third on a Haley Taylor (Strawberry Plains, Tenn.) single up the middle that scored Kristen Toppel (Roanoke, Va.). The Eagles scored the go-ahead run on a line drive to left from Siebert that scored Taylor, then Brooke Ramsey (San Mateo, Calif.) cleared the bases with a single smashed through the heart of the infield for a pair of runs batted in.
Carson-Newman's offensive party crew kept rolling in the fourth. After Toppel and Taylor reached on a walk and a hit-by-pitch, respectively, Lockett smashed a ball up the gut that scored Toppel. Siebert line out to left for a sacrifice fly to plate Taylor and give the Eagles a 6-1 cushion.
The Eagles added a solo run in the fifth when Dean took a 1-0 pitch deep to left for her third home run in as many series.
C-N put the game away by virtue of the run-rule in the sixth with a two-run inning. Lockett plunked a 3-2 inside pitch over the wall in right for her 10th homer of the season to extend the Eagles lead to seven. After a Ramsey single and a Talisa Fiame (Pacifica, Calif.) walk, the Eagles got a base hit up the middle from Dean that ended the game early.
Howard got the complete game win in the circle to push her record to 7-4. She struck out five. Rachel Medley was shackled with the loss for the Pioneers to drop to 8-10. She worked the game's first two innings before being chased in the third during the Eagles' four-run frame.
Game two: Carson-Newman 7, Tusculum 6
Carson-Newman rallied from a pair of three-run deficits in order to clinch its 14th regular season South Atlantic Conference championship. The Eagles trailed by three after the top of the first and the top of the fourth en route to rallying for their second true walk-off win of the season.
Tusculum put a crooked number on the board in the first with big hitting. Robin Stoner pounded a two-run home run to left center before Treslyn Reese hit an RBI double to left to give TC the opening 3-0 lead.
C-N began chipping away at the Pioneers' edge in the second with a Burnette RBI single through the right side.
The Eagles tied it up in the bottom of the third when Lockett led off the frame with a double down the left field line before Siebert smacked a missile to right to tie the game with one swing of the bat.
Tusculum responded though in the fourth with three runs. Danielle Kranz (Fairfield, Calif.) hit a batter with the bases loaded to bring in one run before Kaitlyn Stroinski blasted a hot shot up the middle to drive in two and push the lead back to three, 6-3. The chased Kranz from the circle and the eagles brought Howard back in, Tusculum wouldn't see another batter reach base as the Eagles rallied.
The Eagles got runs back in the bottom of the fourth and fifth with sacrifice flies from Taylor and Dean.
Tusculum brought in Medley in relief of starter Cayla Cecil in the sixth. She retired the Eagles in order for the first time in the doubleheader; however, Carson-Newman was able to make the necessary adjustments for the seventh.
Siebert singled to left on the first pitch she saw to start the inning and moved to second on a Ramsey SAC bunt back to the circle. Fiame then took a 1-1 fastball through the right side of the infield to tie the game at six with the RBI base knock.
A wild pitch moved Fiame over to third as Toppel took first on a base on balls with two out. After working the count full, the stage was set for Burnette's dramatics. She nipped a pitch to left center just outside the reach both the leftfielder and centerfielder for the game-winning and conference title-clinching RBI base hit.
The conference championship is Carson-Newman's 14th overall.
Howard collected the win in relief to improve to 8-4. She struck out two. Medley also took the loss in relief, allowing three hits and two runs in her 1.2 innings of work.
Carson-Newman concludes its season Saturday at 1:30 p.m. against Queens. The doubleheader was initially scheduled for Sunday before impending thundershowers forced the game forward a day.
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