GREENWOOD - S.C. - At 10:57 PM, Gracie Derrick (Chapin, S.C.) caught the last out of the game to cap a 2-0 day for the Lander Softball team at the Bearcat/Fleet invitational. Lander took down former PBC foe Young Harris, 7-3, in the first game before winning a late-night affair with the Limestone Saints in 3-0 shutout fashion.
Lander now sits at 10-2 on the season, Young Harris is 10-5, and Limestone is 9-3.
Game 1: Lander 7, Young Harris 3
As they did in the first game yesterday, the Bearcats struck first as Logan Coward (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) brought home Derrick on an RBI fielder's choice and Samantha Bumgarner (Mount Pleasant, S.C.) brought home Bella Angeli (Cowpens, S.C.) on an infield single to give Lander a 2-0 lead after one.
The Blue and Gold continued to pile on in the second as Derrick and Angeli both hit RBI singles and Abbie Behe (High Point, N.C.) hit a sacrifice fly to score Derrick to make it 5-0 after just two innings of play.
Young Harris started to find some success against Alyssa Grimes (Plant City, Fla.) in the third after being shutdown the first two innings as the Mountain Lions plated two runs to cut the lead down the 5-2.
Behe was not done causing damage, however, as she would hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth to extend Lander's lead to 7-2.Â
The Mountain Lions got a run back in the fifth but
Bailey Pattison (Ponte Verda Beach, Fla.), who came on to start the fourth, kept the visitors there the to secure the four-run win and her fourth win of the season.
Game 2: Lander 3, Limestone 0
Hits were at a premium in the late-nightcap as both teams combined for seven hits across the game.
Lander once again struck in the first on an RBI fielder's choice from Raquel Camuglia (Spring Hill, Fla.) to give the Bearcats a 1-0 lead.
Gracyn Millsaps (Statesville, N.C.) then doubled the lead in the fourth with a home run to the batting cages beyond the left center field fence and Behe capped a stellar night with her second homer in as many games in the fifth to give Lander a 3-0 lead.
However, one run was all Taylor Scott (Milledgeville, Ga.) ended up needing as she tossed six innings of three-hit ball, striking out four and walking none. She gave way to Pattison in the seventh who only needed to face the minimum to secure her first save of the season.
The Bearcats start a long road swing next weekend as they open PBC play at Augusta on Friday, February 23rd for a single game starting at 5:00 PM. The same two teams are set to play a doubleheader on Saturday the 24th scheduled for 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM.
