HICKORY, N.C. — The Carson-Newman softball team split a South Atlantic Conference doubleheader with 10th-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday afternoon. The Lady Eagles fell in game one, 10-2, in six innings but bounced back and held off a late Bears rally to claim the second game, 8-7.
With the split, the Lady Eagles are 28-11-1 overall and 6-2 in the conference. Lenoir-Rhyne is now 26-7 on the season and 5-1 in SAC play.
In the first game, the Lady Eagles jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but the Bears erupted for eight runs in the fourth inning en route to a 10-2 victory.
The Bears tallied 14 hits, while C-N managed just five for the game.
Senior Leah Price (Spring City, Tenn.) went 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBIs to lead the Lady Eagles.
Jessica Fellmeth (Waxhaw, N.C.) and Kat Rivers (Royston, Ga.) contributed three hits apiece to lead Lenoir-Rhyne, while Carlee Carpenter (Newton, N.C.) and Haily Jarman (Wadesboro, N.C.) added two hits each in the win.
Lady Eagle starting hurler Mary Shealy (Clinton, S.C.) was tagged with the loss after surrendering eight runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings of work.
Lenoir-Rhyne starter Dawon Millwood (Hixson, Tenn.) went the distance to earn the win. Millwood (13-3) gave up two runs and five hits and struck out five in six innings in the circle.
C-N struck first in the top of the fourth. After Shealy and Caitlyn Lance (East Ridge, Tenn.) drew walks, Price roped a triple to right field to clear the bases and give the Lady Eagles a 2-0 lead.
However, Lenoir-Rhyne took control of the contest in the home half of the inning as it scored eight runs on eight hits to build an 8-2 lead. Rivers, Megan Laxton (Taylorsville, N.C.) and Brittany Davidson (Fort Defiance, Va.) each had a RBI single in the inning, while Jody Mizelle (Colerain, N.C.) produced a two-run double and Carpenter delivered a run-scoring double in the inning.
In game two, C-N held off a late seventh-inning rally by the Bears to claim an 8-7 victory.
The teams combined for 26 hits in the contest, as C-N finished with 12 and the Bears tallied 14.
Price went 3-for-5 to lead the Lady Eagles, while Shealy, Bri Shoemake (Ooltewah, Tenn.) and Sara Kelley (Birchwood, Tenn.) each had two hits. Shealy had a home run and three RBIs.
Carpenter, Jarman and Brandi Haithcock (Snow Camp, N.C.) collected three hits apiece to lead Lenoir-Rhyne, while Davidson chipped in two hits. Mizelle, Davidson and Haithcock each had a home run in the loss.
Shealy (25-9) earned the win in the circle after giving up seven runs and 14 hits in seven innings of work. She also fanned seven batters.
Lenoir-Rhyne starter Lauren Harris (Yadkinville, N.C.) took the loss. Harris (10-2) gave up five runs and eight hits in 6 2/3 innings in the circle.
Shealy got the Lady Eagles off to a strong start in the first as she delivered a two-run home run to center field to give C-N a 2-0 lead.
C-N added to its lead in the third. With the bases loaded, senior Whitney Kee (Knoxville, Tenn.) came through with a sacrifice fly to drive in Amber Hewitt (Ringgold, Ga.) to give the Lady Eagles a 3-0 advantage.
The Bears tallied their first run of the contest in the home half of the third, as Mizelle homered to right center to trim C-N's lead to 3-1.
But the Lady Eagles scored four runs in the fourth to take a 7-1 lead. Amy Lawrence (Maryville, Tenn.), Shoemake, Shealy and Kee each had a RBI single in the inning for C-N.
C-N added an insurance run in the fifth to build an 8-1 cushion. Freshman Sara Kelley (Birchwood, Tenn.) doubled to lead things off and later scored on a groundout by Dariayn Wright (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) to give the Lady Eagles a seven-run lead.
Lenoir-Rhyne made things interesting with a late rally. After scoring a run in the sixth, the Bears pushed across five more runs in the seventh, including a two-run home run by Davidson and a solo blast by Haithcock, to trim C-N's lead to 8-7. However, Shealy was able to record the final out to seal the win.
The Lady Eagles return to action on Sunday in a SAC doubleheader at Anderson. First pitch is set for 2 p.m.
