Tusculum College won a pair of extra-inning games from King University in non-conference softball action Monday evening, winning the opener 4-3 in eight innings on an RBI double by Kaytlin Stroinski, and taking the nightcap 11-10 in eight innings on a sacrifice fly by Katie Brennan.

The Pioneers (23-14) will be on the road Tuesday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. at Erskine, while the Tornado (17-23) travel to Lees-McRae for a Conference Carolinas twinbill on Wednesday.

Game 1: Tusculum 4, King 3 (8 innings)
(Box Score)

Stroinski doubled off the fence in right field with no outs in the bottom of the eighth to bring home Miranda Beeler with the winning run, as the Pioneers rallied from a 3-0 deficit with three runs in the fifth inning.

Elizabeth Johnson (10-8) won her third straight start after allowing nine hits and three earned runs, with five strikeouts and two walks. She worked out of trouble in the third and eighth innings, stranding a pair of Tornado runners in both innings. Overall, King left 10 runners on base in the game.

Beeler and Alix Kruel each had two hits in the game for the Pioneers, while Carolyn Williamson had a two-run single that tied the game during Tusculum's fifth-inning rally.

Christina Melcher and Cassie Ringstaff each went 2-for-4 at the plate for the Tornado, as seven of the nine starters picked up a hit. Hannah Smith knocked in a pair of runs with a first-inning single and Aubrey Hutt had an RBI single in the fourth for King.

King scored twice in the first when Octavia Lewis-Rand was hit by a Johnson pitch with one out and moved to third on a double by Melcher. With two outs, Smith singled up the middle to drive home both runners and give the Tornado a quick 2-0 lead.

The Tornado added a run in the fourth when Allie Spell singled with two outs and moved to third on a bloop single to right by Ringstaff. Hutt then singled to center to bring home Spell and extend the Tornado lead to 3-0.

After being held to one hit through four innings by King starter Hannah Light, on a one-out bunt single by Beeler in the first, the Pioneers struck for three runs with two outs in the bottom of the fifth to tie the game. Brennan doubled and Leah Powell reached on a walk after an eight-pitch at-bat. Kruel then singled to right to bring home Brennan and cut the Tornado lead to 3-1.

With runners at second and third, Williamson lined a single into left field to bring home both Powell and Kruel and knot the game at 3-3. Beeler followed with an infield single to put runners at first and second, but Light got a strikeout to escape further damage.

Tusculum looked for the win in the bottom of the seventh as Powell walked with one out and Kruel followed with a single. However, Light was able to send the game to extra innings on a strikeout and a groundout.

In the top of the eighth, King bunted the leadoff runner to third base, then a walk put runners at the corners with one out. Johnson was able to keep the game tied as she retired back-to-back hitters on ground balls to Lindsey Umberger at short.

In the bottom of the eighth, Beeler started the inning at second and Stroinski attempted to bunt her to third. After taking a strike and fouling off a pitch, Stroinski took a ball then lined a pitch off the fence in right as Beeler easily scored the winning run. It was the third walkoff RBI of the year for Stroinski, who had a game-winning single against Shepherd on Feb. 24 and a bases-loaded walk against Lincoln Memorial on March 20.

Light (12-11) worked seven-plus innings for the Tornado, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits while striking out five and walking two.

Game 2: Tusculum 11, King 10 (8 innings)
(Box Score)

Brennan capped off a wild game with an unconventional sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth to secure the victory for the Pioneers, who lost leads of 4-1, 9-7 and 10-9 to the Tornado. The fourth inning alone took 35 minutes to complete, with the teams combining for 11 runs on 10 hits, two walks and two errors.

Stroinski, Brennan and Paige Sneed had three RBIs apiece for the Pioneers while Stroinski and Williamson each scored three times. Seven of the nine batters in the Pioneer lineup scored at least one run, while eight of the nine starters recorded at least one hit.

The teams breezed through the first two innings, with a single by Melcher in the first and a base hit by Umberger in the second accounting for the lone baserunners. King took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third against Tusculum starter Powell on an RBI triple by Ringstaff, but the Pioneers broke loose in the bottom of the third against Tornado starter Morgan White.

Samantha Silver led off with a single and moved up on a bunt by Kruel. Williamson singled to move Silver to third, then stole second. After a groundout, Stroinski and Brennan drew back-to-back walks, the latter forcing in Silver and tying the game at 1-1. Williamson then scored when King's catcher threw wildly home on a passed ball, thinking Williamson was breaking toward the plate. The error gave Tusculum a 2-1 lead and Sneed extended the lead to 4-1 with a two-run double to left-center.

King came back with six runs in the top of the fourth to take a 7-4 lead. Tori McComas hit a three-run home run during the inning, and Melcher and Fallon Thomas followed with RBI singles off Johnson, who had relieved Powell earlier in the inning.

Tusculum responded in the bottom of the fourth with five runs to regain the lead at 9-7. Nicole Ball led off with a double and later scored on a single by Kruel to cut the margin to 7-5. A single by Williamson and a fielder's choice grounder by Beeler loaded the bases for Stroinski, who cleared the bags with a double to deep left which gave the Pioneers an 8-7 lead. Brennan followed on the next pitch with a double to center that brought home Stroinski and pushed the Pioneers on top 9-7.

King threatened in the fifth against Powell, who reentered the game with a runner at first base. The Tornado loaded the bases with one out, but Stroinski cut down a runner at the plate on a grounder to first for the second out and Powell got a comebacker from Ringstaff to end the frame. In the sixth, King knotted the game at 9-9 as Melcher led off with a single and scored on a two-run homer to right by Thomas.

The Pioneers went back in front 10-9 in the sixth against Light, who entered the game for White at the start of the inning. With two outs, Stroinski and Brennan drew back-to-back walks, then Sneed followed with a single to right that brought home Stroinski with the tiebreaking run.

King fought back yet again in the seventh, tying the game at 10-10 as Hutt led off with a single, moved to second on a bunt by Ringstaff and scored on a double to right by Melcher. Tusculum avoided further damage in the inning as Melcher tried to advance to third on a grounder to short by Thomas, only to be gunned down across the diamond by Stroinski for an inning-ending double play.

Ball led off the seventh with a double for the Pioneers, but was stranded at third as Light got out of trouble via a popup and a strikeout. The Tornado had the first crack at breaking the tie in the eighth, only to strand Thomas at third on a groundout and a fly ball.

In the bottom of the eighth, Williamson started the inning at second and moved to third on a sacrifice by Beeler. Stroinski walked on four pitches, putting runners on the corners for Brennan. On an 0-2 pitch, she hit a line drive to right that was snagged while both runners were halfway off their respective bases. Hesitation on the throw in to first base allowed Stroinski to scamper back safely, and gave Williamson time to dash back to third, tag up and sprint home as the relay throw to the plate skipped past the catcher.

Ball finished 2-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored, while Sneed was 2-for-4 with a double and Williamson was 2-for-5 with a steal. Stroinski drew three walks and reached base in four of her five plate appearances while handling 11 chances at first base without an error.

Powell (3-0), who had pitched just 11 1/3 innings over 10 appearances, worked seven innings, allowing 11 hits but just three earned runs. White allowed nine hits and nine earned runs in five innings for the Tornado before yielding to Light (12-12), who allowed two runs on two hits and three walks over the final 2 2/3 innings.

Melcher led the Tornado in game two by going 4-for-4 with a double and two runs batted in, while Thomas was 3-for-5 with a double, home run and three runs batted in. All nine starters in the King lineup in game two either scored a run or had an RBI in the contest.