CLEMMONS, N.C.— The Montreat softball team traveled to the Winston-Salem, N.C. area for a non-conference doubleheader against the Carolina University Bruins Thursday afternoon. After a 7-6 loss in game one, Montreat dropped a 4-2 scoreline in the second matchup as the Cavaliers moved to 6-27 on the season.
Taylor Yonke started the opening contest with a triple to right before
Alyssa Hudson's sacrifice fly gave the Cavaliers a 1-0 advantage through two at-bats. Though CU responded with a run in the second, the Cavs answered with single runs in four consecutive frames to build a lead.
Hudson collected RBI base knocks in the third and fifth innings, while
Sarah Edge registered an RBI single in the fourth as Montreat's edge ballooned out to three (4-1). Carolina then began its rally, notching a pair in the bottom of the fifth to creep within a run. Despite a sacrifice fly by Yonke in the sixth, the Bruins completed their comeback with two more in the bottom of the frame to tie the competition at five prior to walking off on the Cavaliers in the seventh.
Yonke and Hudson both went 2-for-3 at the plate, and the latter recorded three of the team's five RBIs.
Carolina (8-10) grabbed an immediate 2-0 lead in the first inning of the second competition thanks to a pair of unearned runs. Following a trio of defensive frames, Yonke singled in
Kylie Granger in the top of the fifth; however, the hosts got that run and another back in the bottom of the inning to expand its lead to three (4-1) through five.
Although
Alara Cashwell plated
Keelie Mauk in the seventh and Yonke capped off her 3-for-3 day with a base hit in the same half inning, CU closed out the game and completed the sweep by stranding two Cavs on base in the 4-2 ballgame.
Leah Coffing pitched a hitless two frames in relief to highlight the Cavaliers' defensive effort.
The Montreat softball team now looks to break out of its slump on Saturday against the Columbia College Koalas. First pitch of game one in Black Mountain, N.C. is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.
