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Trojans Sweep Lincoln Memorial, Move Atop SAC Standings

Trojans Sweep Lincoln Memorial, Move Atop SAC Standings
Box score

ANDERSON, S.C. - Freshman Rebecca Martin's walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning gave the Trojans a 1-0 victory in game one, while Anderson rallied for a win in the nightcap, 9-6, to sweep a South Atlantic Conference softball twinbill past Lincoln Memorial Saturday afternoon at Smethers Field.

Anderson (30-6, 8-2 SAC) won its fourth straight game and sixth of its last seven outings to move atop the league standings, while Lincoln Memorial slipped to 15-25 overall and 4-9 in the league.

Game #1
Anderson 1, Lincoln Memorial 0

Martin was 2-for-4 with a pair of singles and the RBI in the opener, while sophomore Charlotte Sieber was 1-for-3 with a run scored. Senior Amber Duncan and sophomores Danielle Swygert and Laura Jansky each added a hit for the Trojans. Duncan (15-3) earned the win by tossing her seventh shutout and 13th complete game of the season, scattering six hits and striking out five, while walking three.

LMU sophomore Brianna Mulkey led the Railsplitter offense, going 3-for-4 with three infield singles, while Meghan LeFevor (7-12) suffered the hard-luck loss. The right-handed junior surrendered seven hits over six innings and struck out two, while walking one.

Sieber led off the bottom half of the seventh inning with a single to shallow center and freshman Jessica Neidigh followed with a bunt to the left side of the infield and reached base when the throw to second in an attempt to force out Sieber was wide of the bag, allowing Sieber to move to third. Martin recorded the game-winning single, her second hit of the contest, to plate Sieber with the winning run.
The Trojans threatened in the bottom of the first inning, getting two runners on base with one out, but were unable to push a run across, while Lincoln Memorial got two runners on with two outs in the second, but Duncan recorded her third strikeout to end the threat.

AU again got two runners aboard with one out in the fourth on back-to-back one-out singles from Swygert and Jansky, and again in the fifth but again came away empty-handed.

Anderson threatened in the bottom of the fifth inning by loading the bases with two out, but the Trojans were unable to capitalize, while it appeared that LMU captured the lead in the top of the final inning. The Railsplitters loaded the bases with one out and a grounder through the right side appeared to plate a pair of runs, but the Railsplitter batter was called out for being outside the box. Duncan then got out of the inning by notching her fifth strikeout of the contest and setting up Martin's heroics.

Game #2
Anderson 9, Lincoln Memorial 6

Sophomore shortstop Abby Child finished the nightcap 3-for-4 with a home run, a double and four RBI, while scoring twice. Neidigh recorded a double and a single in four at-bats and crossed the plate three times, while Martin ripped two singles in four trips to the plate.

Freshman Amanda Snow led the Railsplitters offense, going 3-for-4 with a homer and a two-RBI double, while LaFevor added a solo home run and a single in three at-bats. Sophomore Taylor McGinnis was 2-for-4 with a pair of singles.

Duncan (16-3) tossed 3 2/3 innings of relief to earn her second win of the day, while giving up a run on three hits. The right-hander struck out two and walked three. LeFevor (7-13) absorbed the setback, surrendering four earned runs on six hits in relief, while striking out five.

Anderson jumped out to an early lead, sending nine batters to the plate and scoring four runs in the bottom of the first.

But LMU quickly trimmed the Trojan lead to 4-2 in the top of the second, as senior Bridget Eicher recorded a one-out homer and LaFevor reached on an error and came around to score on Danae Reed's infield single.

AU increased its lead to 5-2 in the bottom of the frame, as Neidigh and Martin led off with back-to-back singles.

However, Lincoln Memorial chipped away with a run in the third and took a 6-5 lead in the fourth, with LaFevor leading off with a home run to center and Snow ripping a two-out, two-RBI double to left-center.

The Trojans battled back in the bottom of the sixth, rallying for four runs to regain a 9-6 advantage. Freshman Bri Cason reached on a fielder's choice and Sieber came up with a clutch one-out RBI triple to center to knot the score at 6-6. Neidigh followed with a double to right that plated Sieber with the go-ahead run and Child blasted her team-leading 12th home run of the season over the left-field fence to set the final score.

Duncan gave up a one-out walk in the bottom of the seventh, but the Trojan defense recorded an inning-ending double play to seal the win.

Anderson will be back in action on Tuesday for another conference doubleheader, when Catawba pays a visit to Smethers Field for a 2 p.m. first-pitch.

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