College Softball Finals: Randolph-Macon 2-4, Guilford 1-3

GREENSBORO N.C.—Randolph-Macon College’s Madison Gilman led the Yellow Jackets with three RBI in Saturday afternoon’s Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) doubleheader sweep of Guilford College. The Yellow Jackets took game one, 2-1, and the nightcap, 4-3, in eight innings.

Only one-half inning in game one’s first three innings featured more than four plate appearances as Guilford’s Casey Snead and Randolph-Macon’s Nelda Bagley held batters in check. Even though the Yellow Jackets produced a run a piece in the fourth and fifth innings, each time the Quakers held the Yellow Jackets in check by stranding Randolph-Macon with the bases loaded. The Quakers were able to produce run, but placed Rachel Howard on first base with a single before the Yellow Jackets retired the Quakers.

Randolph-Macon jumped out to a 1-0 start in the second contest and held the lead to the sixth frame. The Yellow Jackets widened their lead with a two-run sixth inning, all coming with two outs. A Caroline Barnette home run one-half inning later erased the lead, tying the game. With a runner placed on a second at the beginning of extra innings, Katie Woody’s sacrifice fly with one out proved to be the game winning run, completing the Yellow Jacket sweep.

Barnette collected all three Quaker RBI in game two as a result of three-run home run, finishing game two 2-for-4, rebounding from a 0-for-2 game one. Rachel Howard finished the afternoon 4-for-6 including a 3-for-3 game one effort where she collected Guilford’s lone RBI and double.

Gilman finished 3-for-6 for the Yellow Jackets with a double in each contest and three total RBI. Hayden Fontenot drove in two runs in game two, both on a single up the middle with two outs in the top of the sixth inning.

Snead (4-3) took the complete-game loss in game one, striking out eight batters with five coming in the first three innings. The junior also walked two batters. Maggie Shaffer (5-4) took the game two complete-game loss, striking out four and walking three in eight innings.

Nelda Bagley (10-3) collected wins in both contests for Randolph-Macon, throwing a complete-game in game one where she struck out seven. Bagley relieved game two starter Kelsey McLaughlin after five and one-third innings to collect win after giving up the Barnette home run on her first batter faced. McLaughlin gave up two runs on five hits and struck out two while Bagley gave up just one run on two hits and struck out four.

The Quakers continue their weekend homestand tomorrow, facing nationally-ranked Virginia Wesleyan College for a 1 p.m. ODAC double head at Haworth Field.