PITCHING, TIMELY HITTING KEY SWEEP AGAINST WINTHROP

BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2 RADFORD, Va. – Behind solid pitching and timely hitting, Radford swept Winthrop in a Big South doubleheader on Saturday afternoon from RU Softball Field. The Highlanders (19-34, 12-11 Big South) edged the Eagles (25-26, 12-11) by the scores of 4-2 and 4-3.

Tomorrow's series finale has been moved to 12:00 p.m. with the winner finishing fourth in the regular season. Both squads will face each other in the first round of the Big South Championship on Thursday in Rock Hill, S.C. Prior to first pitch, Radford will recognize its senior class of Morgan Eye, Jessica Agee, Jackie Jenkins and Ryndee Ruch.

“We knew the significance of the series coming in and our pitchers both stepped up in the circle and kept us in a position to win,” stated head coach Maggie Johnson. “Timely hitting and keeping our mistakes limited helped us to the victories. We know what our task is tomorrow and we will come focused a ready to play ball.”

Eye connected on a three-run home run in the first and freshman Rachael Walters (Powhatan, Va./Powhatan) held Winthrop to four hits lifting Radford to a 4-2 victory in game one.

Walters took a no-hitter into the fifth and a one-hit shutout into the seventh before the Eagles made things interesting. However, she was able to bear down and close it out. She struck out five and did not walk a batter.

Eye launched three-run home run, her fifth of the season, with two down in the first, catapulting Radford to a 3-0 lead. All the runs were unearned as an error with one out allowed the second runner of inning to reach.

The Highlanders added a run in the third on a RBI double by freshman Emily Naegele. Following a leadoff single by senior Jessie Hutchens, Naegele laced a double into the leftfield corner easily knocking in Hutchens from first.

Walters cruised into the seventh, allowing just a two-out single in the fifth. However, an infield single off the end of McKenzi Corn's bat and a two-run long ball by Chelsey Schoenfeldt put Winthrop on the board and cut Radford's lead in half with no outs. After a one-out single, Radford ended the game on back-to-back fielder's choices.

Sutton Watson suffered the defeat in a complete game effort. She allowed just one earned run on five hits with four strikeouts and zero walks.

Radford jumped out to a 4-0 lead after three innings and held on for a 4-3 win in the nightcap. Jenkins put in a solid performance, allowing two earned runs on seven hits, . She scattered seven this, struck out one and walked two to earn the victory.

Sara Allen was Jenkins' nemesis, going 3-for-3 with three RBI for the Eagles. Corn added two hits and scored twice.

Naegele and Eye each went 2-for -3 with a RBI and run for the Highlanders.

Following a two-out RBI single in the second by Agee, Radford added to the lead with three more runs, on four hits, in the third. Small ball led to the first run as a sac bunt moved the two runners over and Hutchens' chopper to short made it 2-0. An RBI triple by Naegele to right and Eye's single back up the middle doubled the advantage to 4-0.

The Eagles got one run back in the second as a two-out RBI bloop single by Allen. The run was set up by Corn's leadoff double and Schoenfeldt reaching when a collision in the outfield let the ball drop safely. More damage was averted when Eye easily gunned down Schoenfeldt trying to score from second.

Another two-out RBI hit by Allen made it 4-3 in the sixth. With two outs and the bases full, it looked like Jenkins would get out of the jam, but Allen's liner to the outfield was misjudged and knocked in two.

The Eagles put a runner in scoring position (2^nd) with one out in the seventh, but Jenkins bore down and induced two shallow fly balls to secure the victory.

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