HARROGATE, Tenn. — In each of the Lady Railsplitters' games Saturday, they trailed.
But, it wasn't for long.
The Lincoln Memorial University softball team bounced back in both rather quickly, defeating Davis & Elkins, 11-3, in six innings before ending the night with a run-rule, 10-1, victory over Ohio Dominican at Dorothy Neely Field.
The pair of wins, which featured 22 runs on 16 hits, handed the Lady Railsplitters (7-1) their sixth straight victory.
In the opening game of the four-team playing field, LMU was led by
Grace Cochran, who finished with a 2-for-2 effort at the plate with four RBI and a double, plus
Ty-Kella Goins' triple, RBI and walk.
Davis & Elkins (1-3) used a three-run second inning to get ahead of starter
Faith Howe (W, 2-1), but once the Lady Railsplitters responded with same amount in the bottom half, Howe nor her team surrendered the lead.
Cochran began her hot day in that second inning when she shot a bullet into left-center field, clearing the bases to knot the score at 3. Things remained knotted up until LMU spotted six runs on the Senators in the bottom of the fourth to pull away for good.
It was the sophomore Cochran again as she sliced a single through the right side to plate
Audrey Petoskey and
Allie Jones. Goins followed it up at the next at-bat with a triple into right center for the 7-3 lead, and then Goins scored via a sac-bunt from
Sierra Hucklebee before the Lady Railsplitters tacked on two more thanks to a turn of the lineup to bring up Jones as she hit a two-RBI single.
Kelsie Tuggle added onto the 9-3 lead when she sent her first-career home run over the right-center wall in the fifth frame, and Elisa Bruce finished off the 11-run opening game with an RBI-groundout to score
Bella Buccellato, who pinch ran for Jones, in the sixth inning.
In the second game, the Lady Railsplitters were double happy as five players — Hucklebee,
McKenzie Henry,
Emma Webb, Jones and Cochran (2) — all contributed to the slew of doubles (6).
Henry complemented her double with a 2-for-2 outing at the plate, as did Cochran, who had her pair of extra-base hits plus another stellar performance in the batter's box (2-for-2) in the No. 9-hole.
After
Justice Smith (W, 1-0) allowed a home run in the top of the first inning, the junior settled down. She tossed four innings, allowing just the one run on four hits with seven strikeouts.
It didn't take her squad long to make up for her earned run as the Lady Railsplitters scored 10 straight to end this one in five innings.
With two outs in the third inning, the Lady Railsplitters finally broke through, smacking four of their six doubles all into left-center field, which scored three runs to give them the lead for good.
ODU (2-6) threaten with a double in the fourth inning with one out, but Henry caught the runner stealing, and then Smith tossed one of her seven strikeouts to end the frame.
That's when the Lady Railsplitters tacked on three more runs via the bat of Cochran, who placed a double just inside the right-field line to plate a runner followed by a pair scoring via a mishandled ball at second base to take the 6-1 lead.
A bases-loaded walk, plus a Jones' bases-clearing double down the left-field line, placed the finishes touches on the 10-run, run-rule victory and Saturday sweep.
