BEREA, Kentucky – The Wilmington College softball team swept a doubleheader for the second time in three days as the Fightin' Quakers defeated Berea College 5-1 in game one and 14-6 in five innings in game two on Tuesday.
In game one, Wilmington struck first as Hayley Suchland opened the scoring with an RBI-single that scored Ali Dixon in the top of the third inning. Alecia Kemp, the next batter, drove in Suchland with an RBI-single to center field. Jillia Cook also contributed in the inning, scoring Kemp with an RBI-groundout. After starter Grace Shell stranded runners at second over the next two innings, Je'Taysia Johns doubled home Allison Pierce in the sixth.
Trailing 4-0, the Moutaineers got a run on a double from Savannah Fallis in the sixth, but a Pierce RBI-double scoring Suchland in the seventh got the run back. Berea would get the lead-off runner on in the bottom of the inning, but it wouldn't come around to score.
Shell improved to 6-1 on the season with her seventh complete game of the season. The sophomore allowed just one earned run while striking out eight. Jacqui Howard dipped to 4-6 allowing five earned runs on 11 hits.
Offensively, the middle of the lineup did the heavy lifting for the Quakers as the two, three and four hitters – Suchland, Kemp and Pierce – tallied eight of the team's 11 hits. All three had a single RBI while Suchland and Pierce each tallied three hits including two doubles from Pierce. Kendra Hubbard finished 2-of-3 to account for a third of Berea's hits.
In game two, Berea scored a run in the top of the first, but Wilmington batted around in the second. In total, the Quakers scored seven runs on three hits to take a 7-1 lead. The Mountaineers would cut the deficit in half with three runs in the bottom of the second, but the Quakers' offense couldn't be stopped as the visitors scored in every inning. Two runs in the top of the fifth, again from Pierce, closed out the game in five innings.
Wilmington finished with 10 hits as a team. Pierce led the way with a 2-for-3 performance with four RBIs while Suchland and Micalah Hensley both finished 2-for-4 with multiple runs scored. Ashley Spencer and Kara Winchester led the Moutaineers with two-hit games in defeat.
"Offensively, we hit the ball with power up and down the lineup," Head Softball Coach Beth Floyd said. "Allison Pierce and Hayley Suchland were incredible today."
Wilmington (12-4) returns to Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play with a doubleheader at home against John Carroll University on Saturday. First pitch from the WC Softball Complex is scheduled for 1 p.m.
