Newberry, S.C. - The No. 11 Lenoir-Rhyne University Softball Team (30-7, 9-1) remained in sole possession of first place in the South Atlantic Conference with a doubleheader sweep of Newberry College (15-22, 2-8), 9-0 and 8-2,?Thursday afternoon at Newberry Field.
The Bears, who are also ranked second in this week's NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Poll, increased their winning streak against league opponents on the road to 16 games.
Game One - Lenoir-Rhyne 9, Newberry 0
L-R junior Dawon Millwood (Hixson, Tenn.) pitched a five-hit shutout in improving to 16-3 on the season and tying a season-high in strikeouts with 10 en route to the win.
Senior shortstop Kat Rivers (Royston, Ga.) led the Bears at the plate with two hits and three runs batted in while junior second baseman Carlee Carpenter (Newton, N.C.) added two doubles and two runs scored in the victory.
Rivers started things off for the Bears with an RBI triple as part of a two-run first inning.? Carpenter and Rivers each drove in run in the fourth inning to push the advantage to 4-0 before L-R put the contest away with a four-run seventh inning.
Newberry's Felicia Taylor (Venice, Fla.) fell to 8-12 on the year after suffering the defeat.
Box Score
Game Two - Lenoir-Rhyne 8, Newberry 2
After spotting Newberry a 2-0 lead, Lenoir-Rhyne reeled off eight straight runs to complete the doubleheader sweep spearheaded by sophomore first baseman Jessica Fellmeth's (Waxhaw, N.C.) two home runs and five RBI.
Taylor opened the scoring with a two-run single in the first inning for Newberry but Fellmeth quickly tied the score with a two-run home run in the top of the second.
Later in the frame, freshman outfielder Jody Mizelle (Colerain, N.C.) drove in a run on a fielder's choice to give Lenoir-Rhyne the lead for good.?
L-R pushed its advantage to 6-2 when Fellmeth connected on a three-run home run in the third inning before the Bears rounded out the scoring with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, respectively.
Junior Lauren Harris (Yadkinville, N.C.) improved to 11-2 on the season while freshman third baseman Haily Jarman (Wadesboro, N.C.) added two hits and two runs scored for the Bears.?
Shelley Jeffcoat (Lexington, S.C.) fell to 3-5 after taking the loss for Newberry.
Box Score
Lenoir-Rhyne returns home to face Anderson in a South Atlantic Conference doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2:00 p.m., as part of Senior Day.? Newberry takes on Carson-Newman in Jefferson City, Tenn., for a 1:00 p.m., doubleheader on Saturday as well.
