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Becky Mantel
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5
Winner Radford RADFORD 32-22
4
Campbell CAM 23-29
Winner
Radford RADFORD
32-22
5
Final
4
Campbell CAM
23-29
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Radford RADFORD 0 0 4 0 1 0 0 5 6 2
Campbell CAM 0 0 1 0 2 1 0 4 11 1

W: Morrow, Abby (18-16) L: A SCHISLER (5-4) S: Huffman, Kayla (3)

Game Recap: Softball |

MANTEL’S BIG NIGHT LEADS RADFORD TO 5-4 VICTORY



BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Becky Mantel hit her first career grand slam and drove in all five Radford runs as the Highlanders held off Campbell 5-4 Friday night in an opening game of their Big South regular-season closing series that was delayed twice.
 
With the win, Radford improved to 32-22 overall and 13-9 in conference play, clinching fourth place in the league and the No 4 seed for next week's tournament.
 
Mantel went 2 for 4 with a double and the career-high five RBIs, including the grand slam that put the Highlanders up 4-0 in the third inning. It was her ninth home run of the season and 32nd of her career, tying assistant coach Hope Creasy for fourth on the program's all-time list.
 
Abby Morrow notched her 18th win of the season, allowing two earned runs over 5 2-3 innings before Kayla Huffman recorded the final four outs to put it away and record her third save of the season.
 
Whitney Davis helped set the table for Mantel in the third inning with a leadoff single. Nia Chiles walked and Marissa Gagliano reached on an infield single to load the bases. Mantel then fouled off a pair of 3-2 pitches before crushing one well over the fence in left-center.
 
Campbell got on the board in the bottom of the inning with an unearned run. After two infield hits around an error loaded the bases with one out, Rachel McCollum lined a hard shot off the lower leg of Morrow. The lead runner scored on the play, but Gagliano hustled to corral the loose ball and threw home for a putout. Morrow then recovered to get an inning-ending groundout.
 
Mantel made it 5-1 in the top of the fifth by drilling another ball to left-center for a two-out RBI double. Chiles scored on the play after leading off with a single to shallow center, recording her 21st stolen base and moving to third on a groundout.
 
However, the Fighting Camels used three hits, including a two-out, two-run single by McCollum to get within 5-3 in the bottom of the inning. They made it a one-run game in the sixth on a double, a fielding error and a single. Another single put runners on corners with two outs. Huffman then came on in relief and walked leadoff hitter Katie Baker to load the bases, but then got a strikeout on three pitches to keep the Highlanders in front.
 
Huffman retired the first two batters in the seventh before a two-out double by Amber Schisler, but she followed with her third strikeout to close it out.
 
The game started two and half hours late due to lightning and rain, and then was stopped for about 18 minutes in the sixth inning when the stadium lights suddenly went out.
 
The teams will finish off the regular season with a doubleheader on Saturday with the first game set for 1 p.m.
 
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