VIDEO: Vickee Hollifield Interview
The Eagles and Lions play a twinbill starting at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Ponder Field. The Eagles and Lions have split the last three doubleheaders played in Mars Hill. Mars Hill swept the Eagles at Ponder Field in 2009 to snap a 44-game losing streak to the Eagles in the series. One has to go all the way back to 2006 to find the last time the Eagles took both ends of a road doubleheader over the Lions.
"They have girls who can hit it and take a good cut at the ball," head coach Vickee Kazee-Hollifield said. "We know we'll have to pitch and defend effectively. We have to match that if they score runs. We'll look for continued offensive production on our end."
Carson-Newman won game one that year 11-1 via the run-rule before taking a 3-0 decision in the night cap.
A sweep of the Lions would extend Carson-Newman's winning streak this season out to nine games, which would match the longest string of victories of the year.
Carson-Newman has outscored its opposition 55-8 on its current seven-game win streak.
While Carson-Newman's batting average on the win streak is on par for what it has been overall this season, the Eagles' slugging and extra base hits have been jacked up.
Carson-Newman is averaging 1.71 doubles per game and 1.28 home runs per game on the win streak. The Eagles are slugging .627 as a team.
Katie Pritchett (Ringgold, Ga.) and Abby Fiessinger (Benton, Ky.) have the top bats for the Eagles over the streak.
Pritchett has brought her overall season average up more than 80 points by going 5-for-8 at the plate with a double, two home runs and seven runs driven in.
Fiessinger has a .526 average over the spurt. She has reached base successfully 17 times in 26 plate appearances with nearly as many walks (seven) as hits (10).
Add the offense with a pitching staff that has combined to give up two earned runs over the last seven games and you have a formidable attack. Allison Webster (Charlestown, Ind.) has seen opponents hit just .105 off her over the last seven games.
She and Lacie Rinus (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) represent two of the best strikeout artists in Division II. Rinus has 95 Ks and ranks 19th in the country. Webster has 93 and is 21st.
Carson-Newman and Minnesota State Mankato are the only two programs in the country with two pitchers in the top 25 nationally for strikeouts.
They'll take on a Mars Hill team that has struggled offensively this season. The Lions rank second from the bottom in the SAC in runs, hits, slugging percentage and on-base percentage. They're team batting average of .280 is eighth in the league.
Lions' pitching has also struggled. Mars Hill 6.09 team ERA is 11th in the league. Opponents are hitting .344 against Mars Hill, which is also second from the bottom in the conference.
First pitch Wednesday against Mars Hill is set for 2 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network starts 1:55 with the AEC Countdown to First Pitch on cneagles.com/live.
