CLINTON, S.C. – Sophomore utility Kasey Wolfe was the jack of all trades on Wednesday afternoon during the Presbyterian College softball team's split with South Carolina rival Furman, part of a tight defeat in the opener (4-2) but far-and-away the star of the show in an 8-1 beat down to finish the doubleheader.

Highlighting PC's 14^th victory of the campaign, the Spartanburg native stacked up an RBI-single, an RBI-double, and a two-run homer to ice the game late. She did all of this while also pitching from beginning to end, throwing a one-hitter as Presby earned a dose of payback.

The Blue Hose have now realized nine wins on their home turf this season with the first Big South series on the horizon, capitalizing on Wolfe's excellence to beat Furman for the 13^th time.

Head coach David Williams' crew will have their hands full this weekend as the league schedule opens up, hosting conference leader USC Upstate for a Friday DH and Saturday afternoon finale. The seven-game homestand then concludes next Wednesday against another in-state opponent, the Terriers of Wofford.


 
NOTABLES
 
- PC's eight runs are tied for their second-most ever produced against the Paladins, planting four runs in the bottom of the 4^th to earn a split. Wolfe, Kendall Owens, and freshman Audrey Burton each posted three hits in the Game Two sprint, not to mention an RBI-triple near the midway point from centerfielder Gracie DeCuir.

- Half of Presby's RBI came from the hands of Wolfe, now leading the roster in that category with 21 runs-batted-in while slugging .623 over 26 games.

- Wolfe allowed just two base-runners over the full seven innings (one hit, one walk), with Furman's only scrape of the contest being unearned due to an error in the 5^th. The Paladins went down 1-2-3 in four separate innings during the second bout, including in their last chance.

- The Owens/Burton/Wolfe trio went a ridiculous 9-for-11 in part two, as the Blue Hose compiled five extra-base swings in their revenge quest. That's a career-high for the rookie Burton, who batted in the two-spot at third-base.


 
GAME ONE – FURMAN def. PC, 4-2
 
- Presbyterian was nearly able to come away with a sweep over their Greenville visitors, ahead 2-0 after the first frame thanks to a Paladin mishap and a Blair Darby RBI-single.

- However, the game's next four runs all went Furman's way, including a 3^rd-inning leadoff home run that tied things up at two. From there, a single in the 5^th and double in the 6^th gave FU the separation they desired.

- Paladin starter Emme Buzhardt stayed in the circle for the entirety of Game One, limiting the Blue Hose to four hits over 28 at-bats.


 
GAME TWO – PC def. FURMAN, 8-1
 
- Luckily for coach Williams' lineup, they regained their mojo in the second duel while Wolfe turned back virtually all comers. Over 86 pitches, the second-year All-Conference honoree was electric as she kept Furman quiet.

- DeCuir's triple blew things open in the 4^th by pushing the lead to three, followed by Burton's first collegiate RBI and back-to-back run-scoring doubles from Wolfe and Owens.

- With Wolfe's 6^th-inning bomb, there are now four players on PC's roster who have homered at least three times this semester. They have 17 longballs on the year, as Wolfe and Owens both rank inside the Big South's top six for batting average (.416 and .411 respectively).


 
UP NEXT
 
- The Blue Hose will have a tough challenge to begin the conference slate on Friday and Saturday, taking on a USC Upstate rival who sits at 23-4. The Spartans hold the 13^th-best win percentage in America (.852) after sweeping South Dakota on Wednesday.

- Upstate is the Big South leader in BA (.366), ERA (2.94), and fielding percentage (.969). They have responded to each loss this season with a win in the following game, winning as many as 12 straight in mid-February.

- ESPN+ will be streaming the entire series, which gets started on March 14 for a 1:00 PM doubleheader.