GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Emory & Henry College Softball Team (11-22, 3-12 ODAC) snapped a 10-game losing streak Sunday afternoon as it split with Guilford College (18-14, 4-10 ODAC) in Old Dominion Athletic Conference action. The Wasps won the first game, 10-8, while the Quakers responded to take game two by a 6-3 score.
Game One – Emory & Henry 10, Guilford 8
Emory & Henry got out to a 6-0 lead after the third inning as it took advantage of five base hits. Sophomore third baseman Bethany Anderson (Dublin, Va.) plated a pair of runs with a double to start the scoring while junior second baseman Martha Fluharty (Halifax, N.C.)hit a two-run home run to right centerfield to highlight the inning.
Guilford got on the board with one run in the bottom of the fourth. Sloane King singled to right center which drove in Rachel Howard, who doubled to start things off one batter earlier.
The Wasps made it 8-1 in the fifth on a pair of RBI singles by freshman first baseman Taylor Doss (Damascus, Va.) and senior designated player Veronica Blankenship (Roanoke, Va.).
In the bottom of the fifth, the Quakers drew the score to 8-5 on a grand slam by Marty Wilcox. Guilford tied the contest at eight runs apiece in the sixth highlighted by a two-run double to left field by Sarah Cutright.
Down to its last three outs, E&H was able to get two runs in the top of the seventh. With two runners on and one out, Blankenship drove in the winning runs with a double to left centerfield.
Freshman shortstop Hannah Bays (Abingdon, Va.) and Blankenship each went three-for-four while Blankenship had four RBI. Sophomore Brandy Bryant (Salem,Va.) went the distance as she allowed eight runs on 12 hits with two strikeouts, picking up the victory.
Guilford was led at the plate by Cutright, who went three-for-four with two RBI and Wilcox, whose grand slam got the Quakers back in the game in the fifth. Calli Pastor took the loss in relief.
Game Two – Guilford 6, Emory & Henry 3
The Quakers rallied from being down three runs after the first to salvage the split with the Wasps in the nightcap. Emory & Henry got out to a 3-0 lead after the top half of the first inning as Bays belted a three-run home run over the left field wall for her ninth of the season.
Guilford closed the gap to 3-2 in the second when Maggie Shaffer singled up the middle with two outs to drive in two runs. GC took the lead in the bottom of the third with three runs highlighted by Cutwright's two-run single to right field.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Quakers added an insurance run on a RBI-single to centerfield by Rachel Howard.
E&H got runners on base in the top of the sixth and seventh innings, but was unable to bring them home as Guilford took the second contest by a 6-3 score.
Howard, Autumn Yoder, and Laura Hall each had two hits in the contest for the Quakers while Shaffer and Cutright drove in two runs each. Shaffer picked up the win as well, scattering five hits and three runs pitching a complete game with four strikeouts.
Bays led the way with the home run as the Wasps were only able to manage five hits in the contest. Sophomore Katie Grimm (Staunton, Va.) fell to 5-4 on the year with the loss in three inning of work.
Emory & Henry will travel to Virginia Beach on Tuesday afternoon to make up the contest with Virginia Wesleyan College that was halted due to Winter Storm Virgil. The contest which was in the top of the second inning will be restarted from the beginning. First pitch is set for 1:00 p.m.
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