ASHLAND, Va. – Junior
Gracie Ellis (New Kent, Va./New Kent) tossed six scoreless innings with ten strikeouts in the opener, while three different Yellow Jackets homer between two games as the eighth ranked Randolph-Macon softball team swept a doubleheader from Averett on Saturday afternoon.
The Basics:
- Scores: Randolph-Macon 7, Averett 0; Randolph-Macon 11, Averett 2
- Location: Ashland, Va.//Randolph-Macon College//Carol Estes Park
- Records: Randolph-Macon (14-2-2, 5-1 ODAC), Averett (11-13, 5-3 ODAC)
How It Happened:
Game 1
- The Yellow Jackets started the scoring in the bottom of the first. Rilee Baughan (Rappahannock, Va./Warsaw) hit her sixth homer of the year with two outs in the inning to break the ice and give Randolph-Macon a 1-0 lead.
- Ellis sat down the first eight Averett batters to begin the game, but a Hannah Jones single to right field in the third inning got the Cougars their first hit.
- The Lemon and Black tacked on another run in the bottom of the third inning to extend their lead to 2-0. Blayne Talley (Richmond, Va./Cosby) started the threat with a one out single down the right field line. The freshman stole second and was brought home on a Naomi Sadler (Emporia, Va./Brunswick) two-out single up the middle.
- In the bottom of the fifth inning, Ellis led off with a single up the middle and Jacy Ramos (Williamsburg, Va./Lafayette) was sent in to pinch run. Talley broke the game open with her first career home run, sending it over the left field fence. Later in the inning Sadler singled through the right side and scored on a Baughan single up the middle to give Randolph-Macon a 5-0 lead.
- Randolph-Macon added two more insurance runs in the sixth inning, Hannah Martin (Chesapeake, Va./Grassfield) doubled home Olivia Owens (Salisbury, Md./James M. Bennett) and Martin scored on a Ellie Herndon (Midlothian, Va./Midlothian) sacrifice flyout to right field. Freshman Dylan McNerney (Amherst, Va./Amherst County) was sent in to close out the game in the seventh inning and struck out two of the three Cougar batters. The Yellow Jackets took home the game one win with a 7-0 score.
By The Numbers
- Baughan went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a home run.
- Talley recorded her first career homer in a 2-for-3 day at the plate.
- Sadler ended the game with two hits at the plate. The junior also had an RBI and a stolen base.
- Martin and Herndon pitched in with an RBI each.
- Ellis was marvelous in the circle for the Yellow Jackets, pitching six complete innings with ten strikeouts and gave up only four hits. The junior is now 9-0 on the season and notched her fifth shut-out of the season.
- McNerney shutdown any comeback effort by Averett, striking out two of the three batters faced in the seventh inning.
How It Happened:
Game 2
- Averett started game two with a bang in the first inning, as Kadence Woodlief left the yard with a solo homer to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead.
- The Yellow Jackets answered in the bottom half of the inning to take the lead at 2-1. Lanyon led off with getting hit by a pitch and Sadler singled into left field to start the inning. Lanyon scored on a Kayla Davis (Powhatan, Va./Powhatan) sacrifice fly out to left field to tie up the game. Owens would reach on a fielding error at third base that brought home Sadler to give Randolph-Macon the lead.
- The Cougars saw Grace Watlington reach base with a single to begin the second inning. Kailey Gates singled home Watlington later in the inning to tie the game back up at 2-2.
- Randolph-Macon would answer again with their at-bats in the bottom of the second, scoring four runs on five hits. Reagan Hill (Hanover, Va./Hanover) and Talley both singles to start the onslaught of hits. Lanyon hopped on the hit parade with a single through the left side to score Hill and give the lead back to the Yellow Jackets. Sadler wanted to join the fun in the inning, she singled up the middle to bring home Talley and Lanyon. Sadler would score on a wild pitch later in the inning to cap off the four run inning with a Lemon and Black 6-2 lead.
- Owens added a run for the Yellow Jackets in the fifth inning, as she crossed home on a Hill single up the middle.
- Davis hit a sacrifice fly into center field to score Sadler for another run in the sixth inning. Kiley Lamberth (Mechanicsville, Va./Mechanicsville) ended the game with a two run bomb to give Randolph-Macon the 11-2 win and sweep of Averett on the day. The homer was the first home run for the sophomore in her career.
By The Numbers
- Sadler went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and scored three times. The junior ended the day with six hits in seven plate appearances.
- Owens ended the day with two hits and two RBIs.
- Davis and Lamberth both ended the second game with two RBIs.
- Baughan pitched six innings, allowing two runs on seven hits with five strikeouts and one walk.
For The Record
- Lanyon notched her 151st hit in her career with a single to begin game two. The milestone moves the junior into fifth all time in program history. She also now has stolen 79 bases in her career to move to third in program history.
- Baughan's home run in game one is the 28th of her career and moves her tied for fourth all time in Yellow Jacket history. The senior also moved to second all time in career RBIs with 139 overall.
- Sadler moved up to seventh all time in program history in runs scored in her career with 102.
Up Next
RMC will welcome in Guilford College tomorrow Sunday, April 7, for a 1 p.m. ODAC doubleheader.
