Eagles split first day with run-rule of Erskine, drop first of the season against USC Beaufort
On the first day of The Low Country Classic, Carson-Newman was featured by high-level pitching and strong defense. However, after a shutout win over Erskine, hosts USC Beaufort handed the Eagles their first loss of the season.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | R | H | E |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
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0 | 3 | 2 | 3 | X | 8 | 8 | 0 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
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0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | X | 3 | 10 | 0 |
VIDEO: Michael Graves Interview
VIDEO: Lorelei Spradlin Interview
Eagles split first day with run-rule of Erskine, drop first of the season against USC Beaufort
HARDEEVILLE, S.C. – On the first day of The Low Country Classic, Carson-Newman was featured by high-level pitching and strong defense. However, after a shutout win over Erskine, hosts USC Beaufort handed the Eagles their first loss of the season.
"I am more than happy that we run-ruled Erskine, but if you go back and dissect it, we didn't have that many hits. We came through in some situations, but it's not where we want to be offensively," head coach Michael Graves said. "In game two, it really came back to haunt us, because we had an outstanding pitching performance, and I kept saying 'three runs will win this game' and we couldn't find a way to push across two more runs."
Against the Flying Fleet, C-N was 6-for-15 (.400) with runners on base and 5-for-11 (.455) with runners in scoring position, notching three two-out RBIs. While against the Sand Sharks, C-N went 3-for-10 (.300) with runners on and 2-for-8 (.250) with runners in scoring position.
"I've got to come back, move some people around, and get the batting order going," Graves said. "We've got to find a way to keep from hitting lazy flyballs and score some runs."
Carson-Newman 8, Erskine 0
Lorelei Spradlin (Blacksburg, Va.) got the ball for her second start of the season. The sophomore did a strong job working around traffic on the basepaths. The Flying Fleet loaded the bases with two outs in the first and Spradlin induced a groundout. Then again in the second with the bases juiced, the right-hander got a strikeout to close the frame.
After a scoreless bottom of the first, the Eagles woke up the bats and struck first, as they've done in every game so far.
It started with a base hit by Sarah Walker (Mill Spring, N.C.) and then a walk to Addie Saunders (Radford, Va.). They moved into scoring position on a groundout, as Abbi Martin (Gadsden, Ala.) hammered a deep fly ball to right center for her second triple of the year, 2-0. The very next batter, Malyiah Smith (Knoxville, Tenn.), hit a single that drove in Martin.
Spradlin put Erskine down in order in the top of the third. In the bottom half, Macauley Bailey (Cross Plains, Tenn.) reached on catcher's interference, and then Grace Gregory (White House, Tenn.) smoked a frozen rope double to left center, driving in Bailey. Another Walker single put runners on the corners. After Lacey Keck (Knoxville, Tenn.) came in as a pinch runner, C-N went for a delayed double steal and Gregory came in, 5-0.
Anne Marie Richards (Spring Hill, Tenn.) caught Ava Rogers stealing to end the away half of the fourth. With the bats back up, the Eagles added more insurance.
Martin reached via an error, then stole second. Another Smith single put runners on the corner, and a Reese Winchester (San Diego, Calif.) loaded the bases. A walk from Bailey pushed Martin across, 6-0. After a pitching change by Erskine, Richards came through, smashing a double down the left field line, driving in Smith and Winchester for her first career RBIs, 8-0.
Spradlin's day was done after four, finishing the day with four strikeouts, allowing just four hits. She was replaced by Riley Sikes (Powell, Tenn.), who put together a shutdown 1-2-3 frame to secure the first run rule of the season for C-N.
It marked the first time that the Eagles had back-to-back shutouts since March 19, 2022, a doubleheader sweep of Catawba. This is the first time under Graves that C-N has shut out different opponents in consecutive games. The last time this happened was in 2018, when C-N defeated Erskine and North Greenville on February 6th and 13th.
USC Beaufort 3, Carson-Newman 1
In its first true road game of the season, C-N tangled with the hosts in USC Beaufort for the nightcap on day one. It was just the second all-time meeting, with Carson-Newman winning the inaugural contest, 11-2 in 2023.
The Eagles looked to carry momentum from the first game over as Bailey found a gap in left field for a double, followed by a Richards single that put runners on the corners with two outs. However, a flyout by Gregory ended the inning.
Atiana Stamper (Knoxville, Tenn.) got the nod in the circle, making her third start of the season. Cate Conway led off with a single, but Stamper settled and put the next three down.
In the top of the second, just as it has done in every game this season, C-N broke the ice to take the lead. Katey Mathena (Blacksburg, Va.) continued to build off her hot start to the season with a base hit, followed by a Saunders single, put the pressure on. With two away, Smith came up and put one down the right field line that scored Mathena, 1-0.
However, that would be all the Eagles would plate in this contest.
After a 1-2-3 second frame from Stamper, the two sides would put up zeros in the third and fourth. The Eagles went down in order, while the Sand Sharks left runners on first and second in both innings.
Beaufort would tie things up in the fifth. With runners on first and second, Saria Simmons singled to center field, driving in Conway, 1-1. After that, Sikes replaced Stamper, who finished with the lone run allowed on seven hits with a strikeout in four and a third innings.
C-N threatened in the sixth, Richards led off with a single before Bailee Worley (Black Mountain, N.C.) replaced her as a pinch runner. With Worley on second, Walker drilled a ball to left that had extra bases written all over it before Tamiyah Whitlock made an outstanding grab to keep the game level.
The Sand Sharks broke through in the bottom half, back-to-back singles and a passed ball put two runners in scoring position with one away. Avery Alexander did her job with a sacrifice fly for her first career RBI, followed by an RBI single from Conway, 3-1.
The Eagles were unable to muster anything together in the seventh, falling for the first time this season. They will look to get revenge on the Sand Sharks tomorrow at 1 p.m. to close out their trip to the Low Country Classic.
Day two begins with another meeting with Erskine, the first pitch is set for 11:00 a.m. from the Richard Gray Complex. The game can be heard on cneagles.com/live. Fans can also watch the radio crew at work via a press row feed on YouTube.
