GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University softball team has now won eight-straight games played on Red Edmonds Field, dating back to last season's title run, after sweeping Chowan on Saturday (Feb. 12) afternoon.
Tusculum (6-2) closes out its home stand with a Wednesday (Feb. 16) matinee versus North Greenville. First pitch from Greeneville between the Pioneers and Crusaders is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Game 1: Tusculum 4, Chowan 0
Mya Maddox started off her day at the plate with a 3-for-4 showing, while Hannah Hughes also notched a pair of hits. Emily Sappington (4-0) pitched her fourth complete game and recorded a second consecutive shutout.
Sappington drew the game's first walk, moving up on a Hayley Lazo single to center. Hughes followed suit to load the bases. Kiley Longmire grounds out to the shortstop but Sappington crosses home to open the scoring.
TU threatened in the third after Anna Alloway tripled to right field with one out. She was later thrown out at the plate on a fielder's choice.
Tusculum's remaining three runs scored in the fifth inning. Longmire doubled down the left field line and Makayla Bush entered as her pinch runner. Maddox laid down a bunt for a single to put Pioneers at the corners. She then stole second to move into scoring position. Katelynn Hodges notched an infield single, plating Bush. The runners moved up 60 feet on a wild pitch. Chloe Freischmidt also advanced the runners on a comebacker. She was then caught stealing, buying Hodges enough time to take advantage of the throw to score the final run.
Sappington relented three hits with two walks, striking out two Hawks in seven innings.
Game 2: Tusculum 9, Chowan 3
Six unanswered runs and a big fourth inning broke the 3-3 tie to earn the Pioneers the nightcap victory behind a season-high offensive output. Ireland Cavanaugh (1-0) absolutely shut down the Hawks from the time she entered the circle.
Tusculum recorded a 2022-best nine runs, 12 hits, and eight runs batted in.
Chowan was able to load the bases quickly in the first but a groundout to Reynolds nipped it.
Maddox led off Tusculum's half of the inning with a triple, scoring on one of Alloway's three RBI in the game. Smeltzer, who was perfect at the plate in game two (2-for-2), drew one of her two walks in the contest. Lazo launched a double to straight-away center field, just shy of home run distance, to score the pair.
Chowan quickly scored three runs of its own. Two doubles, a single, and an error allowed a trio of Hawks to cross home. Kallyn Newport assisted in a double play from left field to flip the inning over.
Tusculum broke the deadlock with an eventual winning-run via a Hughes sacrifice fly. Freischmidt opened the third with a walk, advancing on consecutive singles from Smeltzer and Lazo to load the bags with no outs. Hughes lifted a ball to left for Freischmidt to score standing up.
The Pioneers plated five runs in the fourth to break the game wide open. Maddox walked and stole second. Hodges singled and stole a base to put two in scoring positions. Alloway ripped a double to left center, sending the pair home and forcing a pitching change. Madison McGinnis pinch ran for Alloway and immediately stole third. A Freischmidt single up the middle made it 7-2. Kaylee Higgins came in to run for the starting catcher, advancing on a Smeltzer single. Lazo executed a sacrifice bunt to move both a base closer. Higgins was able to score on yet another Chowan wild pitch, while Smeltzer tallied the final run on an Ashley Harbison groundout.
The last real threat of the ballgame was in the top of the seventh with two outs as a Hawk tripled. TU clinched the sweep on a foul popup to Longmire.
Keylon Reynolds started the contest but lasted just 1.1 innings. The sophomore allowed three runs (two earned), five hits, and one walk to one strikeout. Cavanaugh picked up her first victory at TU in a 5.2 inning relief appearance. She struck out three Chowan batters and gave up a pair of hits on 72 pitches (57 strikes).
