HARROGATE, Tenn. – The No. 13 Lincoln Memorial University softball team kicked off its long-awaited 2020 campaign with a bang on Saturday afternoon at Dorothy Neely Field, needing an extra-inning to knock off Maryville University in walk-off fashion, 4-3.

The Lady Railsplitters (1-1) fell behind early in the nightcap against West Virginia State, ultimately making a run at the Yellow Jackets before falling just short, 10-7.
 
Game 1 – No. 13 Lincoln Memorial def. Maryville 4-3 (8)
Trailing by three in the bottom of the eighth inning, LMU rallied all the way back to defeat the Saints (0-2) on an RBI right-field single courtesy of junior Bella Buccellato that brought Grace Cochran to home plate for the game-winning run.

While there were plenty of fireworks in the extra frame, batting for either side took some time to heat up on a cold and rainy afternoon.

Sophomore pitcher Bailey Griffith stymied the Maryville offense for the majority of the day, holding the Saints scoreless across all seven innings of regulation. Striking out six batters while allowing eight hits, Griffith's play in the circle kept the visitors from stealing a victory, limiting Maryville to just four hits entering the extra period.

LMU had their first chance to do some damage in the bottom of the third, thanks to a left center single from Tori Voiles and another down the right side from senior Ty-Kella Goins. The next two batters were caught out in the infield however, keeping the score at a stalemate.

Freshman Madison Henry's lead-off single in the bottom of the fifth wouldn't lead to any runs either, registering as the only hit of the inning. Similarly, Emma Webb's single to kick off the sixth would be the only offensive burst of the frame.

With one runner on base, Griffith struck out Maryville's Emily Frankenreiter to complete a no-run outing in the circle. LMU's inability to break the scoreless tie in the bottom of the seventh meant an extra frame was coming. Then the light bulb went off for the Lady Railsplitters.

But first, disaster struck just three batters into the eighth. Saints infielder Jaclyn Pasakarnis launched a three-run homer down center field, bringing home Frankenreiter and Taylor Shingler. Pasakarnis would finish the day 2-4 at the plate, with that home run seemingly being the dagger.

The LMU defense re-grouped, forced three consecutive outs, and then let it fly once it was their turn to bat.

With Goins already on third base, a wild pitch from Alyssa Callans allowed enough room for the preseason All-SAC first-teamer to sprint to home plate. Kelsie Tuggle then pinch-ran for McKenzie Henry after a walk, setting the stage for a Webb triple to make it 3-2.

Another wild pitch gave way for Grace Cochran to reach second base, scoring Webb for the 3-3 tie. Then Buccellato ended the game with a walk-off single.
Both Webb and Madison Henry finished 2-3 at the plate with one RBI for the former. Buccellato's game-clinching hit served as quite a dramatic way to begin the follow-up to the program's greatest season ever.
 
Game 2 – West Virginia State def. No. 13 Lincoln Memorial 10-7
The offense picked up where it left off in the second half of Saturday's doubleheader, although the Yellow Jackets (4-2) proved to be much more of a challenge to stop in a game featuring 20 combined hits and 17 runs.

The Lady Railsplitters found themselves down 5-0 after the first inning, with three of those scores coming by virtue of pitching mistakes. Senior Justice Smith would only pitch two-thirds of the opening frame, giving up two scores via walks and a third off an RBI single from Paige Scruggs. Faith Howe was inserted into the lineup, where the sophomore too allowed a run from a walk. Scruggs later found home plate after Kerston Kennedy reached on a fielder's choice to shortstop to put LMU in a five-run hole.

Sierra Hucklebee got one of those scores back thanks to a solo homer in the bottom of the first, and after four unanswered runs in the third, suddenly the score knotted up at five apiece.
Webb proved to be even more dangerous in the nightcap, going 3-4 at bat with four RBI, kicking off the scoring avalanche with a double to bring home Goins and McKenzie Henry. A centerfield single from Cochran brought Webb home, while another single from Audrey Petoskey allowed Cochran to even things up.

LMU would never claim the lead however, and the Yellow Jackets surged back in front after a two-run homer in the top of the fifth by Emily Moore.

Three more scores in the sixth inning put the Lady Railsplitters right back in a five-run deficit, thanks to a two-RBI triple from Emma Ruth, and a ground-out from Scruggs to bring Ruth back home.

As a last gasp for a comeback attempt, Webb polished off her tremendous afternoon with another two-RBI strike, scoring Hucklebee and Goins in the bottom of the 6^th. This would be as close as LMU would get for the remainder of the day, as they went 1-2-3 in the final frame.
 
Up Next
LMU will battle the same two squads on Sunday afternoon, again at home, to wrap up the three-team tournament. Getting a rematch with WVSU at 12:30, the Lady Railsplitters take on Maryville for the second time at 3:00 later in the day.
 
How to Follow
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms —@LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram — for more LMU softball coverage.