Kensley Loudermelk earned her third shutout of the season, scattering six hits and striking out six as the Blue Hose softball team earned the 3-0 win over Gardner-Webb in game one of the doubleheader Tuesday afternoon at the PC Softball Complex. After PC rallied in the seventh to force extra innings, the Runnin' Bulldogs scored six in the eighth to take the second game 12-7, splitting the series.
PC moves to 11-11 overall and 1-1 in the Big South, while Gardner-Webb is now at 8-14, 2-3. The Blue Hose host Radford Mar. 21-22, in a three-game series beginning with a doubleheader Saturday at 1 p.m.
Loudermelk pitched a solid game, scattering six hits, while striking out six to move to 5-3 on the year. Summer Darnell earned the loss for GWU, giving up three runs off eight hits.
With one out in the bottom of the first of game one Jenna Harris reached on a hit by a pitch. Two batters later Erin Ruff, who finished the day three-for-seven with two RBI, laced a double to left, driving in a speedy Harris, who took three bases on the shot.
Gardner-Webb threatened in the first after Kellie Beres, who led the team on the day with a five-of-nine effort and four RBI, opened the game with base hit to left. She stole second and third before the next three batters struck out and lined out to third.
Jill McLean led off the bottom of the fifth with a single to left. An out later she scored the game's second run off a RBI double by Shelby Petik that reached the fence in left center as PC took a 2-0 lead.
Gardner-Webb responded in the top of the sixth, with the first batter reaching base on a hit-by-pitch. A follow-up base hit put runners on first and second with no outs. Defense came through with a fly out to left and a beautiful stop by Kersten Legacki who snagged a potential infield single and tagged third before throwing to first for the inning-ending double-play.
Blaire Miller, pinch hitting in the sixth, hit a RBI single to left to bring home Hayley Lawton and run number three for the Blue Hose.
The Runnin' Bulldogs threatened again in the seventh with a runner on first with one out but Loudermelk collected her sixth strikeout of the game and forced a pop out to centerfield to seal the three-run win.
PC finished game one with eight hits by seven different batters, with McLean collecting two. Gardner Webb recorded six hits, with Beres posting two.
After opening game two with a bunt single to first, McLean made her way to third off a sacrifice bunt and ground out to second. She scored the first run of the game off a base hit down the left field line by Erin Ruff that barely stayed fair to help PC go up 1-0.
Gardner-Webb answered in the top of the second with two runs, one coming off a RBI double by Blakely. She was followed by a RBI single by Beres to give the Runnin' Bulldogs the 2-1 lead.
With an out in the bottom of the second, PC loaded bases with a hit by Erin Taylor and a hit-by-pitch and base on balls. An out later Harris hit a bloop single to right to bring home Taylor to tie the game at 2-2.
Megan Champion hit her first home run of the season, this one over the left field wall, to give GWU back the lead, 3-2, in the fourth. The Runnin' Bulldogs made it 4-2 off a RBI base hit by Beres, her second in a row, which plated Taylar Pridgen, who was on off a base hit of her own, her third of the day.
The bottom of the fifth saw PC cut the margin back to one of back to back hits to put runners in scoring position, with the third run coming off a GWU error.
PC recorded three hits in the first four at-bats to open the bottom of the fifth inning. Miller, who finished the day a perfect four-for-four, brought in two of the runners in on a base hit to left, her second in a row, and the Blue Hose retook the 5-4 lead.
In a back and forth game, Gardner-Webb took the lead right back, 6-5, off a two-run home run by Megan Gibbons, her third of the season, in the top of the sixth.
Taylor recorded her third hit of the game in the bottom of the seventh to put herself in scoring position with two outs. Miller came through again on offense the next at-bat, lacing a double to center to bring home the game-tying run, to force an eighth inning with the score 6-6.
Gardner –Webb offense came alive in the top of the eighth as the Runnin' Bulldogs used four hits, including a two-RBI double by Beres, and a RBI single by Gibbons in a six-run inning. to jump out to a 12-6 lead.
PC fought back with a couple of hits in the bottom of the eighth, including a single by McLean to open the stanza. Her shot sailed under the legs of the right fielder, for the hit and error, and she took all the bases to post an informal inside-the-park home run. That would be it as the Blue Hose were unable to mount the comeback and fell by the final 12-7 score.
Darnell (6-4) earned the decision for the second time in as many games, going 3.0 innings and giving up two earned runs and five hits. Sydney Seigler threw 7.0 innings and picked up the loss, surrendering five earned runs and 10 hits with six strikeouts.
GWU ended with 13 hits and two errors, three coming from Beres and two from Gibbons, Champion and Pridgen.
PC posted 15 hits and three errors, with Taylor and Miller recording three hits, and McLean, Petik, Ruff and Rogers posting two each.
