LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Sophomore right-hander Brianna Taylor (Ooltewah, Tenn.) threw back-to-back complete games to lead the Lady Railsplitters (6-15) in a doubleheader sweep of the Bellarmine Knights (10-12) on Sunday afternoon in Louisville, Ky. Lincoln Memorial snapped its five-game losing skid with a 2-0 win in game one before holding on to capture a 6-3 win in game two.
 
Sunday's doubleheader ends a 21-game, season-opening road trip for the Lady Railsplitters, who will finally make their Lamar Hennon Field debut on Wednesday, March 9 when they welcome the King Tornado to town for an NCAA Division II doubleheader beginning at 4 p.m.
 
Game One: Lincoln Memorial 2, Bellarmine 0
 
Taylor was brilliant in the circle for the Lady Railsplitters, spinning a complete-game two-hitter to lead Lincoln Memorial past the Knights in game one. The Ooltewah, Tenn. native finished with three strikeouts and just one walk in the contest.
 
The Lady Railsplitters' offense didn't produce its first hit until the fourth frame, left nine runners stranded on the bases and ended up with just six hits total, but Lincoln Memorial did just enough in the batter's box to fuel the win.
 
Jennifer Moose (Statesville, N.C.) went 2-for-2 with a walk, an RBI and a stolen base, while Ashlea Hunter (Woodruff, S.C.) also went 2-for-2 with a run scored and a steal. Lindsay Cecil (Winston-Salem, N.C.) and Taylor added the other LMU hits.
 
The Lady Railsplitters manufactured a run in the top of the first without recording a hit, as Savannah Couch (Colonial Heights, Va.) led off by reaching on an error, advanced to second on a bunt and moved to third on a fielder's choice. She then scored on a squeeze bunt from Moose, which put the visiting team ahead 1-0.
 
Taylor allowed the first two Bellarmine batters to reach in the bottom of the first via a hit by pitch and a single, but a sacrifice bunt, a lineout and a groundout ended the threat.
 
That would be the last time the Knights would put a runner in scoring position in the game, as Taylor allowed just one hit - a lead-off single in the fourth inning - the rest of the way. Bellarmine would produce just four base runners total over the final six innings.
 
The Lady Railsplitters, meanwhile, stranded two runners on base in the fifth and sixth innings before finally adding an insurance run in the top of the seventh. Hunter led off that frame with a single before moving into scoring position with a steal. A Bellarmine error then put runners on second and third with no outs, while Allie Jones (Ooltewah, Tenn.) made it 2-0 by driving in Hunter with an RBI groundout to first base. Two more groundouts prevented Lincoln Memorial from increasing its lead any further, though.
 
Melissa Hammer and Marlee Tevis accounted for the only hits of the game for Bellarmine. Madeline Kurtz was saddled with the loss despite allowing just five hits and one unearned run with three strikeouts over six innings of work.
 
Game Two: Lincoln Memorial 6, Bellarmine 3
 
Taylor earned her second win of the day by throwing another complete game, improving to 3-6 on the season after allowing nine hits and two earned runs with seven strikeouts. Taylor was masterful through the first five innings, giving up a mere three hits without a run. But Bellarmine recorded three hits in each of the last two innings to make things interesting late.
 
BriAnna Schrimpf (Chandler, Ariz.) led the Lady Railsplitters by going 2-for-3 at the plate with three RBI and a home run. Couch and Cecil added two hits apiece, as Lincoln Memorial finished with nine hits in the contest, their most since putting up 13 against Southern Indiana on February 28. Hunter, Taylor and Becca Burchette (Gas City, Ind.) produced an RBI each.
 
After the first two innings passed without consequence, the Lady Railsplitters grabbed a 2-0 lead in the top of the third inning, as Taylor and Hunter singled before scoring on a two-out, two-run base knock by Schrimpf.
 
The Lady Railsplitters' lead held steady at 2-0 until the top of the sixth inning, when Lincoln Memorial racked up four runs. Schrimpf kicked off the inning with a solo home run to straight away centerfield, her second homer of the season. After a fly out, a hit by pitch and a single by Cecil put the Lady Railsplitters back in business. Burchette hung another run on the board with a double, while Taylor brought in the next run with a sacrifice fly out. Hunter then sent the Lady Railsplitters into the bottom of the sixth with a 6-0 lead with an RBI double.
 
With two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Bellarmine recorded three straight singles to put a run on the board, but Taylor struck out Kurtz to keep the Lady Railsplitters in front 6-1.
 
The Knights got another rally started in the bottom of the seventh, as Ciara Incorvati and Megan Bretz singled to put two runners on from Melissa Hammer, who singled to plate a run. On that play, an infield error allowed another run to score, but Taylor forced Kelly Ely into groundout to prevent Bellarmine from getting any closer.
 
Incorvati, Hammer and Ely led the Knights with two hits apiece. Tevis suffered the loss in the circle for Bellarmine after allowing eight hits and six runs in 5 1/3 innings of work.
 
With the two wins, Lincoln Memorial improves to 13-8 all-time against Bellarmine and moves to 8-4 on the road in the series.