KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Lady Railsplitters (21-20, 4-12 SAC) begin the final week of the regular season on Thursday when they host the Mars Hill Lions (12-26, 5-11 SAC) for a South Atlantic Conference softball doubleheader at Christian Academy of Knoxville (CAK). That twinbill was originally scheduled to be the final games ever played at Dorothy Neely Field, but rain-soaked field conditions and the threat of continuous rain forced the move to Knoxville.
 
Lincoln Memorial will need at least a split to remain in contention to earn a bid to the 2017 SAC Championship, as the Lady Railsplitters fell into 10th place in the conference standings following a sweep at the hands of league-leading and No. 24 nationally-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne last Friday. Mars Hill is directly ahead of LMU in ninth place in the SAC standings after splitting a doubleheader at Queens on Friday.
 
Schedule/Gameday Links:
 
Thursday, April 20 vs. Mars Hill at Christian Academy of Knoxville
Game One (4pm) – Live Stats
Game Two (6pm) – Live Stats
 
Quick Hits:
 
-The Lady Railsplitters had leads of 2-0, 3-1 and 4-2 in game one against Lenoir-Rhyne, but the Bears tied the game in the top of the sixth and scored three runs in the eighth inning to escape with a 7-5 win. LMU left nine runners stranded on base in the contest and left the potential winning run on third base in the bottom of the seventh. The Lady Railsplitters also brought the tying run to the plate in the eighth, but couldn't complete the rally. Dakotah Fraley went 3-for-5 with three RBI and a home run, while Ty-Kella Goins added two hits with a double, as the freshmen duo combined for five of the team's nine hits.
 
-Lenoir-Rhyne scored four runs in the top of the fourth and withstood a late rally to complete the sweep with an 8-6 win in game two. The Lady Railsplitters scattered 11 hits, but left 10 stranded on base to combine for 19 in the doubleheader. BriAnna Schrimpf went 3-for-4 with an RBI, while Fraley pitched in two more hits with a double and two RBI. Ashlea Hunter also finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
 
-The front end of SAC doubleheaders has been problematic for the Lady Railsplitters, who haven't swept a conference twinbill yet this season. Lincoln Memorial is 1-7 in the first game of conference doubleheaders, and the Lady Railsplitters' only victory was a 7-6 win over Anderson. In that contest, LMU trailed 6-2 before scoring five runs in the bottom of the sixth for the stunning come-from-behind triumph. The Lady Railsplitters are 3-5 in the second game of SAC doubleheaders.
 
-Goins has reached base in 12 straight games, while Allie Jones has accomplished that feat in nine consecutive games. Goins went 2-for-6 in the Lenoir-Rhyne series with a double, a run scored and two walks, while Jones finished 2-for-8 with a double and a run. Goins and Jones have been the Lady Railsplitters' two best hitters in conference play with .373 and .442 SAC batting averages. Fraley is close behind with a .363 conference mark.
 
-With doubleheaders against Mars Hill and Newberry remaining, the Lady Railsplitters are in 10th place in the SAC standings. If Lincoln Memorial goes 4-0 this week, it is all but certain they will make the SAC Championship. However, it gets a little dicey if they don't. The top-eight teams in the final SAC standings qualify for postseason play. LMU trails ninth-place Mars Hill by one game and eighth place Queens by two. The Royals complete the regular season against Lenoir-Rhyne on Wednesday.
 
Notes on the Lions:
 
-Mars Hill has won just three of its last eight games, but has scored at least five runs six times over that span. That includes a sweep at Catawba by scores of 8-0 and 8-2 and a 7-6 win in game one against Queens.
 
-In game one at Queens, the Lions rallied from an early 5-0 deficit by scoring four runs in the third and three more in the sixth. Mars Hill erupted for 12 hits in the contest, an effort powered by multiple hits from Cassidy Dahle (3-for-5), Casey Stanek (2-for-3, 2 doubles) and Hannah Smith (2-for-3). Kaleigh Jonas' two-run single in the top of the sixth put Mars Hill in the lead for good.
 
-Mars Hill mustered just six hits in a 9-2 loss in game two at Queens. Stanek hit a home run and doubled as part of a 2-for-4 afternoon, while Emiley Burriss added a double in her 2-for-3 showing.
 
-The Lions have been held back by a pitching staff that ranks 11th in the SAC in earned run average (5.59) and 10th in batting average against (.326). Senior Sydney Elkin leads the team with a 7-7 record, a 3.81 ERA and 38 strikeouts over 101 innings. Stanek and Shelby Culler have tossed 61 and 60.2 innings, respectively, but that pair is a combined 5-16 in the circle.
 
-Stanek leads the Lions in hits (48), doubles (12), triples (1), RBI (23) and batting average (.387). The sophomore infielder has hit safely in 10 consecutive games with five multi-hit efforts over that span.
 
-Dahle is batting .380 with a .402 on-base percentage this season, and leads the team with a .386 batting average in conference play. Only five of the freshman outfielder's 46 hits this season have gone for extra bases, though. Her 13-game hitting streak was snapped with a 0-for-3 performance in game two at Queens.
 
-Sophomore Ragan Broome is the only other Mars Hill player with more than 30 hits this season. Broome has hit .362 with six doubles, two home run and 17 RBI. Jonas leads the team with five home runs and ranks second behind Stanek with 18 RBI. Junior Taylor Lail has also blasted five homers to go along with 13 RBI.
 
Series History:
 
-The Lady Railsplitters are 29-21 all-time against Mars Hill, including a 13-9 home record in the series.
 
-Lincoln Memorial has swept three consecutive doubleheaders from the Lions, who haven't beaten the Lady Railsplitters since April 2, 2013. LMU blanked Mars Hill 5-0 and 1-0 last season. Samantha Smith threw a complete-game six-hitter in game one and allowed just six hits again in game two.