Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The King University softball team opened the season with a tough twinbill at regional rival, 20th-ranked Carson-Newman University. The Tornado got off to a slow start, dropping game one 4-0, but the offense got going in the nightcap, taking the contest 9-3 for the split.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: #20 Carson-Newman 4, King 0; King 9, #20 Carson-Newman 3
LOCATION: Vickee Kazee-Hollifield Softball Complex; Jefferson City, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 1-1; Carson-Newman 5-3
SERIES HIGHLIGHTS
- The offense was paced by Michaela Morris and Kay Brokering who drove in three runs apiece. Morris went 2-for-4 and Brokering went 1-for-4 with a double.
- In her first career at bat, Katie McCann ripped an inside the park home run to give King the lead in game two.
- Erin Roper drove in a pair on the day and collected two hits.
HOW IT HAPPENED GAME ONE
- Both teams threatened in the first inning, opening with a pair of one out runners for the Tornado. Candace Maness singled to start the contest, but both runners were stranded.
- Carson-Newman had runners on second and third with one out, but Emma Hughes stranded both runners.
- King looked to breakthrough in the fourth inning that was started by a Jenna Burnett one-out double. Erin Roper loaded the bases with a two-out single, but the Tornado couldn't push a run across.
- In the fifth, Carson-Newman broke through with four runs. The Eagles got three run-scoring singles, including a successful squeeze bunt to take the lead.
- Eagle pitcher Lacie Rinus then sat the Tornado down in order in the sixth and seventh innings, giving Carson-Newman the 4-0 victory.
OF RECORD
Winning Pitcher: Lacie Rinus (3-1) 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 8 SO
Losing Pitcher: Emma Hughes (0-1) 4.1 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO
HOW IT HAPPENED GAME TWO
- In the bottom of the first inning, Leslie Odom stranded a pair of Eagle runners to keep the game scoreless.
- With two outs in the third inning, McCann ripped the 1-2 pitch from Rinus down the right field line. The ball rolled to the wall and McCann rounded the bases to put the Tornado ahead.
- The Tornado tried to break the game open in the fourth inning. Morris came up with a bases loaded single to score one and Roper followed with a two-run single, stretching the King lead to 4-0.
- Carson-Newman cut their deficit in half with a two-run home run from Cheyenne Boles.
- However, King got both of those runs back in the fifth on a Brokering two-run double, extending the King advantage back to 6-2.
- Carson-Newman scored on run in the sixth, but the Tornado put the contest out of reach in the top of the seventh.
- Brokering worked a bases loaded walk and Morris followed with a two-run single to center, giving King a 9-3 lead.
- Odom made that stand up, working around a one-out single in the seventh, earning her first career win.
OF RECORD
Winning Pitcher: Leslie Odom (1-0) 7.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO
Losing Pitcher: Lacie Rinus (3-2) 5.0 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 SO
FOR THE FOES
- Rinus led the way for the Eagles, posting four hits on the day.
- Boles drove in three runs and collected two hits on the day.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- King defeated a ranked team for the fourth time in five games. The Tornado won their final three games against ranked teams a season ago.
- The Tornado also ended a 21-game home winning streak for the Eagles.
UP NEXT
- The Tornado will be in action again this weekend on the road. Check KingTornado.com for the latest updates on the Tornado.
- Carson-Newman hosts Augusta University on Sunday.
