MARYVILLE – THE worst place in the country for solar eclipse viewing turned out to be the best place for watching Maryville take down rival Covenant in a Collegiate Conference of the South doubleheader.
The home Scots won Monday's first game 8-0 in five innings and then rallied for an 8-5 triumph in the nightcap. Maryville's winning streak has reached 10, which is the program's best run since the Scots won 11 in a row back in March and April 2016.
That team finished 25-17 overall and 15-5 in the USA South. This year's Maryville squad is now 27-9, which matches the win total of head coach
Jill Moore's first season leading the Scots. Moore came to Maryville and produced a 27-15 ledger her first year that included a 12-4 mark in the CCS. The 2024 Scots are 10-2 in the CCS with four tough games remaining over the next two Saturdays.
Maryville hosts No. 7-ranked Belhaven (27-4) this Saturday for Senior Day, and then the Scots wrap up the regular season April 20 at Piedmont (14-13).
Monday's second game saw Covenant streak to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first. The visiting Scots entered just 3-22 overall and 0-9 in the league, so they were desperate for a victory. They struck for four hits and two walks to score the four runs and send a shock to the Maryville dugout.
But there wasn't any panic along the first base line, and Maryville methodically worked its way back into the contest.
Hill on a Hot Streak
Emily Hill and
Bailey Myers delivered RBI-singles in the third inning to cut the lead in half. Since Hill suffered an injury scare last month, she has emerged as one of the team's hottest hitters. Her current 13-game hitting streak, during which she is batting .594 (19-for-32), has coincided with Maryville's current 10-game surge.
"It feels like I've been given an extra opportunity to come up clutch for my teammates," Hill said of getting the OK to play. "It adds even more emotion to my senior year than I was already feeling, but I can't express how grateful I am to be on the field, to be playing with my teammates and playing the game I love for the rest of this season.
"I'm really seeing the ball. I feel confident in myself, and I feel confident in my teammates. That provides me with the sense of ease to give it everything I have all the time."
In the fourth,
Brecca Williams doubled in a run and scored on a
Sara Koonce ground out. In the fifth with two outs, Williams walked with the bases loaded to give Maryville a 5-4 lead, and then Koonce singled through the left side to make it 6-4.
In the sixth, MC scored twice without the benefit of a hit as Covenant mishandled a couple of plays.
Carr Delivers Her Best Outing of Season
That left it up to
Whitney Carr in the circle to complete a remarkable relief pitching performance. Over 6 and 2/3 innings, Carr allowed no hits, one run (unearned) and struck out five against just three walks.
She improved to 7-1 on the season and lowered her ERA to 2.74.
"We prepare for situations like this a lot," Carr said. "Coach really puts the pressure on us in practice; therefore, I felt like I was ready to go in there mentally.
"Today was unexpected with us getting the game moved to Monday. I went in there and thought I'm going to do what I'm going to do, trusting my teammates and trusting myself. I knew that we could get the runs back. There were no worries about that."
Megan Ackerman and
Tia Stewart combined on a two-hit shutout in Maryville's 8-0 win in Game 1. Ackerman covered the first four innings for her 15th victory against just three losses. She gave way to Stewart for the final frame of the five-inning affair.
Williams, Koonce 1-2 in CCS Hits
Maryville's hitting leaders for the doubleheader were Williams at 3-for-5 with five runs scored and two RBIs to go with a double and a stolen base. Williams with 53 runs is 10 clear of the next closest competitor in the CCS. Her 55 hits also lead the conference and are two ahead of Koonce, who went 3-for-7 with a double, two runs scored and two driven in. Koonce is tied for the league lead with seven homers and is first with 92 total bases.
Hill finished 3-for-6 with a run scored and three RBIs, while Myers was 3-for-5 with two runs scored, a stolen base and an RBI. Myers is tied for sixth in the league with 26 RBIs.
Paige Dickinson was 2-for-6 with a triple, a sacrifice fly and two runs driven in. Her 33 RBIs rank fourth in the CCS.
Ackerman's ERA crept under 1.00 and sits at 0.98 to rank second in the league. Her 15 wins rank second and her 107 and 1/3 innings rank second, all to Belhaven's Kennedy Carruth, who the Scots face this weekend.
Before Saturday's doubleheader, Maryville Softball is recognizing nine seniors in ceremonies that begin at approximately 11:30 a.m. First pitch is noon.
Hill is one of this year's seniors, and she can appreciate what one final stretch drive with her teammates means to her family and friends.
"Nothing will ever beat looking up and seeing my people on this hill," Hill said. "That's what I'm going to miss the most when this season is through."
