The William Carey softball team opened Southern States Athletic Conference play with a doubleheader sweep of Brewton-Parker on Friday in Mount Vernon, Georgia. The Lady Crusaders won the first game 5-0 and the second 4-1.
In the opener, Carey took an early lead with two runs in the top of the first inning. Liz Cross reached base to start the game, then scored on a sacrifice fly by Albanie Fussell. Jayden Sawyer followed with an RBI single, giving Carey a 2-0 advantage after one inning.
The Lady Crusaders added to their lead in the third, loading the bases with singles from Caroline Lindsey, Fussell, and Sawyer. Julia Shaw then hit a sacrifice fly to left field to score Lindsey. Carey extended its lead to 5-0 in the fourth as Anna Grace Shows and Cross reached base before Lindsey’s second sacrifice fly of the game scored Shows. Fussell added a groundout that plated Cross.
Pitcher Jayden Sawyer pitched a dominant game, retiring the first 15 batters and allowing only one baserunner. She recorded her third no-hitter of the season. Brewton-Parker struggled offensively throughout the game.
The Lady Crusaders carried momentum into the second game, jumping out to an early 2-0 lead. Brooklynn Montana and Sawyer drew walks before Shaw delivered a two-out, two-run single in the first inning. Carey added to its lead in the third when Lindsey doubled and later scored on Shaw’s RBI single, making it 3-0.
Brewton-Parker responded in the bottom of the third, with Tori Wright singling and scoring on Anna Green’s RBI double to cut the deficit to 3-1. Carey answered in the fifth, with Lindsey singling and pinch runner Lily Bittle scoring on Sawyer’s RBI single to extend the lead to 4-1. Relief pitcher Ryanne Hornsby closed out the game, working out of a bases-loaded jam in the fourth and a multiple-hit threat in the seventh to secure the sweep.
The Lady Crusaders return to action Saturday with an SSAC doubleheader against Abraham Baldwin in Tifton, Georgia, scheduled for 11 a.m.
