GREENWOOD – Blair Hammonds belted a grand slam home run in the second game Saturday afternoon to lead the Lander softball team to a non-conference doubleheader split against Southern Wesleyan University. SWU won the first game, 2-1, and the second game was called due to the eight-run rule when Lander went up 10-2 in the fifth inning. (Game 1 Box | Game 2 Box)
Lander improves to 8-10 overall, while Southern Wesleyan moves to 1-5-1.
Hammonds fourth-inning grand slam capped the six-run stanza and gave the Bearcats a 9-2 lead. The game ended when Haley Foster’s RBI single plated Marilyn Newman in the fifth.
With bases loaded in the second inning, Lander took a 3-0 lead when Amanda Hamby’s RBI single plated Hammonds and Rachelle Adkins, then Newman’s RBI single scored Casey Corbitt.
SWU cut the lead to 3-2 in the fourth on Kayla Galloway’s two-run homer.
With bases loaded in the fourth, Jacqui Haisley made it 4-2 on Natalie Smith’s fielder’s choice and Newman scored on an SWU error to make it 5-2 and set up Hammonds’ slam.
Hamby (2-1) earned the win on the mound as she struck out two, walked three and allowed two earned runs on two hits in five innings pitched.
SWU’s Casey Johnson (0-3) suffered the loss, striking out three, walking three and allowing nine earned runs on 12 hits in 4.1 innings pitched.
Adkins hit 1-for-2 with one double and one run scored, while Brittney Sheriff was 3-for-4 with one run, Hammonds was 2-for-4 with two runs and four RBI, and Newman 3-for-3 with two runs and one RBI.
SWU’s Galloway went 1-for-2 with one run and one RBI.
In the first game, Christy Hudson belted a two-run home run over the left field fence to give SWU a 2-0 first-inning lead.
Lander cut the margin to 2-1 in the sixth when Foster tripled and scored on an SWU throwing error.
SWU’s Liz Elliott (1-0) was awarded the win as she struck out three and allowed one run on six hits in the complete seven innings.
Lander’s Shelbey Spencer (2-6) took the loss, striking out 11, walking two and allowing two earned runs on two hits in seven innings.
For Lander, Foster went 2-for-3.
