GREENWOOD, S.C. – The No. 11-ranked Lincoln Memorial University softball program (13-5, 0-0 SAC) shook off a tough Friday start to the 2022 Bearcat / Fleet Invitational, winning both contests on Saturday over Georgia Southwestern State and Erskine, scoring a combined 15 runs.
 
Head coach Ritchie Richardson moved into second-place all-time in program history with 129 wins, surpassing the mark set by Natalie Laydon from 2013-2017 and tying the mark set by Elaine Minton from 1981-1987 in NAIA.  
 
Game 1 – No. 11 Lincoln Memorial defeat Georgia Southwestern State 6-5.
 
Tusculum graduate transfer Delilah Malczewski took to the circle Saturday morning, as LMU and Georgia Southwestern played out a scoreless opening four frames in the Palmetto State.
 
Georgia Southwestern was the first to register a run in the fifth inning in game No. 1 Saturday. The Lady Railsplitters bats finally came alive in Greenwood in the bottom-half of the inning, as Grace Cochran and Emma Webb reached base for the Blue & Grey. Catcher McKenzie Henry singled up the middle, scoring Cochran as Katie Tuggle came to the plate. The designated player and sophomore took Georgia Southwestern deep for a three-run bomb.
 
Malczewski's strong start was halted in the sixth inning, as Georgia Southwestern State drew level at four runs apiece.  Emma Frost came on in relief for LMU, throwing three innings, with only one unearned run scored as the contest moved into the bottom of the ninth.
 
Frosh Shelby Blake and Grace Cochran put the pressure on reaching base, as a Sierra Hucklebee sacrifice-bunt scored Blake to even the game at five. First baseman Emma Webb completed the dramatic comeback in the bottom of the ninth, singling into right field to score the winning run in Cochran.
 
Emma Frost earned the victory late on in game No. 1 Saturday, allowing only one hit and striking out one, improving to 7-2 on the year.
 
Game 2 – No. 11 Lincoln Memorial defeat Erskine 9-0.
 
The second matchup of the day, a much more secure and less stressful victory, saw the Lady Railsplitters run-ruling the two-win Fleet squad in five frames, tacking on a total of nine runs to close out the Bearcat / Fleet Invitational with a 2-2 record.
 
Grace Cochran, Emma Webb and Kelsey Hoskins all collected two RBI on the afternoon, as Hoskins went deep off Erskine and tallied an impressive three hits in all of her plate appearances.
 
Freshman Shelby Blake again had successful day at the plate in game No. 2 of Saturday, as the newcomer has made strides to solidifying her place as the Lady Railsplitters lead-off-man. Blake went 3-4 on the afternoon to close out the invitational, collecting an additional RBI.
 
Frost was nothing short of dominant yet again for the Lady Railsplitters, capping off another complete-game victory, this time a two-hit shutout in the space of five innings. Frost struck out seven and only walked one to improve to 8-2.
 
UP NEXT…
No. 11 Lady Railsplitters return home to Dorothy Neely this Tuesday, March 1 versus Lees-McRae in a double-header beginning at 1 p.m. EST.  

Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms —@LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram — for complete coverage of Lady Railsplitter softball through the 2022 season.