Offensive Onslaught Powers Gardner-Webb To Sweep Of Liberty
April 12, 2014 | Softball
LYNCHBURG, Va. --- Nine players recorded at least one hit, and Ashley Rhyne (Crouse, N.C.) earned a pair of victories as Gardner-Webb swept a doubleheader against Liberty with a 19-run offensive explosion on Friday afternoon.
Gardner-Webb (13-29, 3-11 BSC) scored 19 runs on 23 hits in the doubleheader, holding on for a 6-5 victory in game one before defeating Liberty (6-36, 1-16 BSC) in the night cap by a score of 13-10. Liberty plated 15 runs on 21 hits in the twin-bill.
Megan Gibbons (Benson, N.C.) paced the Runnin' Bulldogs with five hits in the doubleheader, scoring three runs and driving in two more with a pair of doubles. Samantha Meenaghan (Atlantic Beach, Fla.) added three hits and drove in four runs, launching her first home run of the season in game two while extending her hitting streak to 11 games.
Kellie Beres (Greenville, N.C.) and Jill Blank (Leola, Pa.) each tallied a trio of hits, as Blank drove in four runs. Megan Champion (Knightdale, N.C.) and Jessica Childers (Jacksonville Beach, Fla.) both chipped in a pair of RBIs; Champion smashed her second home run of the season in the twin-bill.
Childers took the ball in game one, allowing five runs on eight hits in five and one-third innings. Rhyne tossed one and two-thirds scoreless innings in relief to earn the victory. The senior right-hander entered in relief in game two, striking out two and walking three to pick up her second win of the day.
Game One: Gardner-Webb 6, Liberty 5
The Runnin' Bulldogs opened the scoring in the top of the first, plating two runs on four hits with a pair of RBI singles by Champion and Childers to take an early 2-0 lead. The teams would trade runs in the second, with Liberty answering a Gardner-Webb tally with a run-scoring single by Marybeth Sciolino to trim the margin to 3-1.
Gardner-Webb countered with two runs in the fifth, pushing the advantage to 5-1 with RBI singles from Gibbons and Blank. The Flames would respond with a trio of long balls, evening the tally at 5-5 on a two-run shot by Katie Zavodny in the sixth.
The Runnin' Bulldogs refused to give in, answering with a Gibbons leadoff single and an RBI single by Childers to reclaim the lead at 6-5. Rhyne took control from there, pitching around a leadoff walk to close out the victory for Gardner-Webb.
Game Two: Gardner-Webb 13, Liberty 10
The second game saw the offensive flood gates open for both teams, as the squads combined for 23 runs on 25 hits. After Gardner-Webb opened the contest with a Gibbons RBI single in the first, Liberty answered with four runs in the home half, taking its first lead of the day at 4-1 following a two-run double by Megan Robinson and a two-run homer by Kelby Allen.
The Runnin' Bulldogs responded with three runs in the second and three more in the third, taking a 7-5 lead following a three-run bomb by Meenaghan in the second and a pair of bases-loaded walks in the third. An RBI double by Blank would stretch the lead to 8-5 in the fourth before Liberty countered with two in the home half, cutting the advantage to 8-7 on a Zavodny single.
Gardner-Webb answered with a three-run sixth, pushing the margin to 11-7 with a leadoff homer by Champion and a two-run single from Blank. Liberty would cut the lead to 11-8 in the bottom of the inning on a Zavodny base knock.
The Runnin' Bulldogs plated two more in the top of the seventh, stretching the advantage to 13-8 following a sacrifice fly and a fielding miscue by the Flames. Liberty answered in the home half, cutting the lead to 13-10 with a pinch-hit two run shot by Kassidy McCoy. Rhyne quickly quelled the rally, forcing an inning-ending grounder to short to close out the sweep for the Runnin' Bulldogs.
Gardner-Webb and Liberty will conclude the weekend series with a 1:00 pm matchup on Saturday afternoon. The game will air live on the Big South Network.
| Box Score: Gardner-Webb 6, Liberty 5 |
| Box Score: Gardner-Webb 13, Liberty 10 |
