SMC Softball and Montreat Split Doubleheader

BLACK MOUNTAIN, NC – The Spartanburg Methodist College softball team split a mid-week doubleheader with host Montreat on Tuesday. The Pioneers took game one, 5-1, while the Cavaliers picked up a 4-2 win in game two.

Game one saw SMC score all of its runs in the second and third innings. The Pioneers plated three runs in the second and two more in the third before the Cavaliers spoiled the shutout bid with a run in the bottom of the sixth.

Offensively for SMC in the win, Carson McCowan and Alex Stuckey each had two hits, and four different Pioneers drove in a run.

The Pioneers got on the scoreboard in the second inning with two outs as they plated an unearned run on a wild pitch for the early lead. They added to their advantage in the inning on an RBI triple by Adriana Stump-Frias, who later scored on an RBI single by McCowan to put the visitors ahead 3-0.

The Pioneers plated two more runs on three hits, including an RBI single by Gracie Starnes and a sacrifice fly by Grace Thomas that pushed the lead to 5-0.

A two-out RBI single in the bottom of the sixth accounted for the Cavaliers' lone run.

SMC starter Bailey Kiser picked up her 12th win of the season, allowing seven hits while striking out three.

The nightcap saw Montreat score three runs in the bottom of the fourth to break a 1-1 tie on its way to a 4-2 win. Josie Smythe accounted for two of SMC's five hits to lead the offense.

Gracie Starnes tied the game at 1 in the fourth with an RBI single. Later in the game, she reached on a throwing error that allowed Lydia Faulk, who led off the inning with a double down the right-field line, to score.

The Pioneers mounted a late comeback in the seventh when Stump-Frias led off the inning with a double. An infield single by Smythe then put runners on first and second with no outs. However, the Cavaliers recorded two ground balls to prevent SMC from scoring, followed by a groundout to end the game.

With the split, SMC is now 22-7 overall and 5-5 in the Appalachian Athletic Conference. The Pioneers return home for a doubleheader on Friday, April 3, at 1 p.m. when they host Bluefield at Eva Grant Softball Field.