Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Maryville College followed strong pitching and a defensive effort in their first win of the day, before errors and miscues got in the way during the day's second game.
Maryville earned the 2-0 win in the first game of the day, as the squad leaned on their defense and the pitching effort of Nicole Blackburn. The Scots forced Huntingdon to leave 10 runners on the bags in the two-run shutout.
Huntingdon would take game two, however, 6-3.
Blackburn went the distance in the game within the circle, as the sophomore moved to 4-2 in her young Maryville career. She gave up seven hits without a single run, as she struck out four in the USA South matchup.
On the weekend, the sophomore transfer had three appearances, as she pitched two complete games. She went 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA, allowing not a single run on the week. She gave up just 12 hits in 14.0 innings of work, while striking out 10.
Ashton Hayden recorded a lead off single through the left side to aid in Maryville's first run. After stealing second, Hayden scored when Aly Snider sent a liner straight back where it came from. Going to the second inning, the Scots led 1-0.
A trio of singles in the top of the third would load the bags for the Hawks after Brandi Blair slapped an infield single off pitcher Nicole Blackburn. The sophomore hurler bounced back to sit Raina Lanier down looking to leave the bases juiced – the Scots' one-run advantage still intact.
Morgan Brewer led off the bottom of the fourth with a huge triple off the fence in center field. A pair of strikeouts and a line out ended the Scots' threat, as the game remained a 1-0 score going to the fifth.
After singles by Hayden and Jenna Roberts, Snider plated her second RBI of the day with a single to left-center. Hayden scored for the Scots on the play, leaving runners on first and second. They stayed stranded as the sixth runners left for Maryville on the day, while the Scots led 2-0 going to the sixth.
A pair of walks and a failed fielder's choice loaded the bags with two outs for the Hawks in the top of the sixth. Maryville forced a fly out to right field, as the Hawks left the bases loaded for the second time on the day, as the Scots earned the win, 2-0.
Maryville saw Hayden and Snider each go 2-for-3, as Hayden scored a pair of runs off two Snider RBI. Roberts, Brewer, Essence Strambler and Christen Torres each added hits in the game to total the Scots eight-hit day.
The Scots left nine runners stranded on the afternoon, while the Hawks left a total of 10 runners in the shutout.
Blair led the way for Huntingdon with a 3-for-4 day, while Samara Miller added a 2-for-4 effort on the Hawks seven-hit afternoon.
Miscues hurt the Scots in the second game of the day, as Huntingdon nabbed the 6-3 win with only one earned run.
Hayden again plated MC's first run, as she reached on an error. A single by Roberts moved her to third, before a groundout RBI by Rachel Taylor scored the speedster. Snider scored Roberts with her RBI double to left, before Alexus Murray's blooper over second scored Snider from third. After one complete inning, Maryville led 3-0 in game two.
Huntingdon plated their first run of the day in the top of the third. Aided by an error, Miller was able to score from third on a fielder's choice that recorded no outs. The play would have given the Scots two outs, before Lanier struck out swinging on the next play. Instead, a Lindsey Selph single to right would score Maggie Porter and Blair on the play, before Jesse Dunn would lace a two-run homer off the foul pole down the left field line. Instead of a 3-1 Maryville lead, the Scots went to the bottom of the third trailing 5-3. Each of the five runs were unearned.
A single, steal and a wild pitch put Dunn on third in the top of the fifth, before an RBI double to the warning track in center from Kelsie Dardon scored her in the two-out rally. The additional run gave the Hawks a 6-3 win.
Maryville was led by Snider's 2-for-3 effort, as she added an RBI and a run. Roberts and Hayden each accounted for a run on one hit, as Brewer and Murray tallied a hit. Murray had an RBI in the contest.
The Scots allowed just one earned run in the contest, as Blackburn came in for 2.0 innings of work to hold the Hawks at bay. She allowed just one hit with one strikeout in the final two innings.
Huntingdon saw Miller go 3-for-4 with a run, while Dunn was 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI. Selph was 1-for-4 with a run and two RBI on her two-run homer.
Maryville will look next to a two-game series with the Scots of Covenant College. The double header in Lookout Mountain, Ga. is slated for a 2 p.m. start on Wednesday, March 15.
