EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Softball Team (10-14, 3-1 ODAC) picked up a pair of Old Dominion Athletic Conference wins over visiting Guilford College (17-7, 2-4 ODAC) Wednesday afternoon at home. The Wasps claimed game one by a 2-0 score and prevailed in the nightcap, 7-6, in eight innings.
Game One – Emory & Henry 2, Guilford 0
The only runs of the game were scored in the bottom of the sixth inning, but both teams had chances throughout the contest. E&H left the bases loaded in the bottom of the first while the Quakers filled the bags in the fourth but failed to push a run across.
After forcing Guilford to strand another pair of runners in the top of the sixth, Emory & Henry went on the offensive attack. With one out and the bases loaded, senior right fielder Hannah Bays (Abingdon, Va.) ripped a base hit to center field to drive in the game's only runs.
GC got one aboard in the top of the seventh, but could not put a runner in scoring position as a trio of fielder's choices to shortstop ended the game.
Junior second baseman Riley Pudney (Beech Mountain, N.C.) had two of the Wasps' four hits in the game while Bays made the most of her base knock, driving in both runs. Freshman catcher Amanda Whitlow (Floyd, Va.) also had a hit in the contest. Senior Taylor Banner (Castlewood, Va.) earned the complete-game shutout, allowing just four hits with a pair of strikeouts.
The Quakers saw Laura Hall and Brooks Bray notch a pair of hits but no other offense was to be had. Courtney Lackey suffered the loss, allowing two runs on four hits with two walks and five strikeouts.
Game Two – Emory & Henry 7, Guilford 6 (eight innings)
Emory & Henry jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Sophomore centerfielder Leah Elswick (Raven, Va.) tagged a 1-0 pitch over the wall in left center to get things going while Bays and sophomore third baseman Ragan Halsey (Hillsville, Va.) had RBI base hits. Sophomore catcher Bailey Williams (Wilmington, N.C.) added a sacrifice fly in the inning.
In the top of the third, the Quakers closed the gap to 4-3. A single down the left field line by Caroline Barnette drove provided the highlight for the inning as it plated a pair.
Emory & Henry got a run back to go up 5-3 in the bottom of the third as Halsey notched another RBI base hit. The Wasps made it 6-3 with another score in the fourth.
Guilford scored three times in the fifth to tie things up and six. With two outs and two runners on, Taylor Boyd singled to right field to clear the bases. A double to left-centerfield by Sabrina Moreno on the next at bat knotted the score.
The Wasps were unable to score in the bottom of the fifth, sixth or seventh, but their defense held strong as well to force extra innings. In the eighth, the Quakers got their runner to third base with one out, but two quick outs ended the inning.
Emory & Henry moved its runner to third with a sacrifice bunt on the first at bat and then a ground out to the right side of the diamond provided enough opportunity for the junior Brittany Scott (Elizabethton, Tenn.) to score and seal the 7-6 victory.
Sophomore designated player Caley Hodge (Elizabethton, Tenn.) went three-for-three with a pair of runs scored while Halsey had two RBI on a pair of base knocks. Elswick's home run provided a hit, a run and a RBI from her leadoff position.
Senior lefty Kaitlyn Pruitt (Abingdon, Va.) went 4.2 innings for a no decision, allowing three earned runs on five hits with three strikeouts. Banner came in with two outs in the fifth and pitched the final 10 outs in no-hit, shutout form to get her second victory of the day.
Barnette had two RBI on a hit with a run while Boyd drove in a pair with her base hit. Makayla Carver took the loss, allowing one unearned run on one hit in 3.2 innings.
Emory & Henry will remain at home on Saturday when it hosts Eastern Mennonite University in an ODAC doubleheader. The series, which will serve as the Wasps' annual Light It Up Blue Day, is set to begin at 1:00 p.m.
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-photo courtesy of Caleb Johnston, E&H '15