Carey Softball Sweeps Faulkner in SSAC Doubleheader

HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Carey University’s softball team won both games of a Southern States Athletic Conference doubleheader against Faulkner University on Saturday. The Lady Crusaders took the first game 3–1 and secured the second with a 7–0 shutout.

In the opening game, Carey scored first in the bottom of the first inning. Albanie Fussell doubled to left-center with two outs and later scored on a single by Julia Shaw, giving Carey an early lead. Faulkner threatened in the second and third innings but failed to score. Their best opportunity came in the fourth, when Madelyn Becker singled and Abby Terrell doubled, but starting pitcher Ryanne Hornsby struck out the next batter to escape the jam.

Carey added to its lead in the bottom of the fourth. Kinley Hogue doubled and scored on Jayden Sawyer’s single. The Lady Crusaders extended their advantage to 3–0 in the sixth when Sawyer doubled and scored on a Faulkner error. Faulkner scored in the seventh on an RBI single by Anna Catherine Segrest, but Hornsby closed out the game with a flyout to center, sealing the win.

The Lady Crusaders carried their momentum into the second game, scoring first in the second inning. Julia Shaw and Caroline Lindsey opened with singles, and after a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, Hogue delivered an RBI single. Hogue then stole second, and Lindsey scored on the throw. Sawyer’s single scored Hogue, and Liz Cross added a bases-clearing triple to left-center, giving Carey a 4–0 lead. Anna Grace Shows finished the scoring with an RBI single, pushing the margin to 7–0.

Faulkner threatened in the third with runners on second and third, but Sawyer escaped without allowing a run. She dominated the rest of the game, allowing just one hit and striking out 13 in a complete-game effort. She faced only two batters over the final four innings without surrendering a hit.

Carey is scheduled to host Blue Mountain Christian in an SSAC doubleheader on Thursday at Joseph & Nancy Fail Field. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.

Source: Original Article