Jefferson City, Tenn. - The No. 11 Lenoir-Rhyne University Softball Team (37-5, 10-0) rallied in both games of a doubleheader to sweep Carson-Newman College (27-4, 6-2), 12-6 and 7-6, Friday in a South Atlantic Conference showdown.? The Bears also increased their winning streak to 11 games.
Game One - Lenoir-Rhyne 12, Carson-Newman 6
Sophomore catcher Sarah Atkins (Newport News, Va.) hit a three-run home run while senior designated player Ashley Duckworth (Conover, N.C.) added a grand slam to rally Lenoir-Rhyne from a 4-0 deficit en route to the win.
Whitney Kee (Knoxville, Tenn.) hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the second inning to stake the Lady Eagles to a 4-0 lead but Atkins helped the Bears answer with a three-run round-tripper in the third to cut the margin to 4-3.
The Bears then took the lead for good with three more runs in the top of the fourth inning which included a two-run single from senior outfielder Brittany Cherry (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) for a 6-4 advantage.
After Carson-Newman cut the margin to one at 6-5, L-R took control once and for all with Duckworth's grand slam in the sixth inning.? Duckworth now has 16 home runs on the year, second-best on the team.
L-R sophomore Dawon Millwood (Hixson, Tenn.) was credited with the win and improved to 16-2 on the season while Carson-Newman's Ashley Boyd (Chattanooga, Tenn.) (16-1) suffered her first setback of the season.
Box Score
Game Two - Lenoir-Rhyne 7, Carson-Newman 6
Atkins hit another three-run home run to highlight a four-run seventh inning as the Bears rallied from deficits of 5-0 and 6-2 to take the sweep.
Boyd hit a two-run home run in the first while Amy Lawrence (Knoxville, N.C.) connected on a two-run single in the second frame as Carson-Newman jumped out to a 5-0 lead after just two innings of play.
L-R got on the board thanks to a bases-loaded walk to freshman first baseman Jessica Fellmeth (Waxhaw, N.C.) and a run-scoring single by junior third baseman Brandi Haithcock (Snow Camp, N.C.) in the fourth inning.
Carson-Newman scored its last run of the game on a sacrifice fly in its half of the fourth.
Atkins, who connected on an RBI double in the fifth inning, tied the contest at six with her second three-run home run of the?day in the seventh before Fellmeth delivered the game-winning, RBI?double for the 7-6 final.
Atkins finished with a game-high four runs batted in while Fellmeth added two hits and two RBI for the Bears.
L-R freshman Alex Smith (Cocoa, Fla.) allowed just one run over six innings pitched while striking out six batters to improve to 14-3 on the season while Carson-Newman's Mary Shealy (Clinton, S.C.) fell to 9-2 after being tagged with the defeat.
Box Score
Lenoir-Rhyne returns home to take on Newberry in a league doubleheader on Tuesday beginning at 2 p.m.
