Hickory, N.C--Lenoir-Rhyne's Softball Team spilt their SAC doubleheader for the second day in a row. On Sunday, the Bears won game one against Queens as
Lauren Rakes struck out 12 Royals and
Savannah Moorefield and
Kylee Leonhardt hit homeruns to give the Bears a 8-2 win. In the night cap, the Bears suffered their first shutout at home since March 28, 2015 as the Royals won 9-0 and held the Bears to four singles in the game.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Game 1 Final: Lenoir-Rhyne 8, Queens 2
Game 2 Final: Queens 9, Lenoir-Rhyne 0
Records: Lenoir-Rhyne (9-5, 5-3 SAC), Queens (6-10, 2-6 SAC)
Location: Bears Field I Hickory, N.C.
STATS OF GAME ONE:
- Savannah Moorefield got the Bears up early with a lead-off homerun in the bottom of the 1st. LR added two more runs with a Kendall Osborne double.
- Kylee Leonhardt hit her 32rd career homerun, a three run shot in the second to give the Bears a 6-1 lead.
- Leonhardt's 150th career hit was a RBI single in the 5th to give the Bears a 8-1
- Queens got a solo homerun in the 7th by Chloe Linton but it was not enough as starter Lauren Rakes went the distance to pick up her third win of the year.
- Rakes allowed just the one earned run.
STATS OF GAME TWO:
- Bears starter Payton Bryant (1-1) held the Royals hitless through the first trip through the lineup but ran into trouble with two out in the third. Back-to-back singles by Kayla Smith and Bre Martinez allowed McKenzie Mccullen to hit a three-run homerun to give the Royals a 3-0 lead.
- Royals added six unearned in the 4th to take a 9-0 lead with Mccullen's second homerun as the big hit.
- Bears were held to four hits in the second game as Moorefield and LaClair were the only Bears to record hits.
- LR did not have a runner reach third during the contest as the Bears were shutout for the first time since February 9, 2019 against Valdosta State.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
- Leonhardt's homerun moves her into a tie for seventh all-time
- LaClair entered the day one of four SAC hitters with a .500 batting average or better this year.
- The Bears entered the day as one of three SAC teams with a team average of .300 or better but Queens came in last in the SAC with a .192 team average.
- On this day this 2004, the Bears swept a doubleheader from Queens in Charlotte by the scores of 4-0 and 6-1.
UP NEXT: The Bears are scheduled to face Wingate in Hickory on Wednesday at 2 PM for a SAC doubleheader.