LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Lynchburg College Softball Team (17-11, 6-2 ODAC) earned a pair of Old Dominion Athletic Conference wins on Saturday afternoon against visiting Emory & Henry College (12-20, 5-7 ODAC) at Moon Field. The Hornets took the opener, 9-1, in six innings and prevailed 11-5 in game two.
Game One – Lynchburg 9, Emory & Henry 1 (six innings)
LC jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Amy Bresson tagged a two-out grand slam to highlight the inning. The Hornets made it 6-0 after the fourth as Kayla St. John came around to score on a wild pitch.
Emory & Henry got on the board in the top of the fifth. After sophomore third baseman Ragan Halsey (Hillsville, Va.) singled to left field, freshman Holly Britt (Floyd, Va.) entered as a pinch runner. A sacrifice bunt and then a single by sophomore centerfielder Leah Elswick (Raven, Va.) drove Britt home to make the score 6-1.
In the bottom half of the fifth, Leslie Bourgeois hit a solo home run to get the margin to 7-1 and the game ended with two outs in the bottom of the sixth on a walk-off home run by Mackenzie Chitwood to make the final score 9-1.
Chitwood finished the game two-for-four with two runs and three RBI for the Hornets. Bresson drove in four and scored once thanks to her grand slam while Bourgeois had two hits, a run and a RBI. Conner English picked up the win, striking out 10 across four scoreless innings, allowing just two hits.
Wasp senior right fielder Hannah Bays (Abingdon, Va.) was two-for-two with a walk while Elswick drove in a run with her base knock. Senior left-hander Kaitlyn Pruitt (Abingdon, Va.) allowed six runs on seven hits while striking out three in four innings.
Game Two – Lynchburg 11, Emory & Henry 5
Lynchburg again got out to a hot start, scoring six runs in the first inning. The Hornets had seven hits in the frame and took advantage of an error, a walk and a sacrifice fly to lead 6-0 after one.
In the third, E&H scored twice on a double to right-center by freshman right fielder Erin Anderson (Aylett, Va.) to make the score 6-2.
The Hornets got the two runs back in the fourth on a two-run shot to left field by Chitwood, extending the advantage to 8-2.
Emory & Henry answered with three in the fifth. Anderson plated a run with a single to right field and was followed by a two-run double down the left field line by Bays.
LC tacked on three on a three-run homer by Bourgeois in the sixth to make the final score 11-5.
Chitwood went three-for-four with two runs and two RBI while Skylar Dickens added three hits of her own. English earned the complete-game victory, allowing five runs on six hits while adding another nine strikeouts.
E&H was paced by Anderson's two-for-three effort with three RBI and a run scored. Bays drove in two with her base hit while senior shortstop Alyssa Clark (Hiltons, Va.) scored twice. Senior Taylor Banner (Castlewood, Va.) took the loss, allowing eight runs on 11 hits in three innings of work.
Emory & Henry will return home on Tuesday to face Ferrum College in a non-conference doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
---E&H---
-photo courtesy of Caleb Johnston, E&H '15