JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (20-10, 2-4 South Atlantic Conference) makes the short jaunt up US 25-E to renew its rivalry series with Lincoln Memorial (18-8, 1-1 SAC) Tuesday afternoon at 3 p.m. from Dorothy Neely Field in Harrogate, Tenn.
The Eagles and Railsplitters are clashing for the 54th and 55th times in the twinbill, the Eagles lead the all-time series 41-12.
Carson-Newman has won seven of the last eight contests with Lincoln Memorial, but the Eagles haven't swept the Railsplitters in Harrogate since 3-2 and 6-4 decisions in 2010. Conversely, LMU will be angling for its first sweep in the series since 1997.
"I know anytime that we go to Lincoln Memorial, it's going to be a classic showdown," head softball coach Vickee Kazee-Hollifield said. "It doesn't matter if its basketball, baseball, softball, it's going to be a great match up. We know we will have to be game ready against a very talented team."
LMU is one of the hottest teams in the South Atlantic Conference. Lincoln Memorial has won 13 of its last 14 contests dating back to Feb. 24. LMU started the season 5-7.
Carson-Newman is trying to bounce back from the inverse, after an eight-game win streak to open the month of March, Carson-Newman has dropped four of its last five. The Eagles have allowed at least seven runs in those losses, which has led to C-N having a 6.10 ERA in South Atlantic Conference games.
The Eagles are the bottom of the league in that regard. Even with that, C-N has a league best 6.5 strikeouts per seven innings in SAC games. Granted, this stretch has come against Anderson, Newberry and Queens, the three highest scoring teams in the South Atlantic Conference with the three highest batting averages in the league.
After giving up three home runs (two over the fence, one inside the park) in its first 25 games, Carson-Newman has seen teams go yard five times in the last five games.
Abby Fiessinger (Benton, Ky.) is riding a season-long seven-game hitting streak and a season-long 13-game reached base streak.
The Eagles still rank as the top defensive club in the South Atlantic Conference. Carson-Newman has a .973 fielding percentage as a team. If the season were to end today, that number would go down as a school record for best fielding percentage and would rank as the fifth best defensive season in SAC history.
First pitch from Harrogate, Tenn. is set for 3 p.m. Follow along with the games with stats at cneagles.com/livestats or with live updates via @cnathletics on Twitter.
