No. 8 Lady Lions split with Meredith College

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Piedmont College softball team could not pick up its seventh sweep of the USA South regular season today as they split a pair at league member Meredith College on Saturday afternoon.<br /> <br /> The Lady Lions dropped the opener 8-7 before taking a 2-0 decision in game two to force a split as the team's program-record 18-game winning streak was snapped by the one run loss in game one earlier today.<br /> <br /> In the opener, Meredith opened up a 4-0 lead scoring two in the first and another pair in the third as a two-run homer by Meredith's Amanda White started the day off wrong for PC. Despite the deficit, Piedmont quickly erased it with a four-spot in the top of the 4th as Lady Lion pitcher Jordin Ellingson tried to help her own cause with a RBI single to start the scoring in the middle inning flare-up.<br /> <br /> Olivia Duncan scored on the Ellingson single as Duncan led off the inning with a triple down the right field line. Three batters later, Ellingson scored on a 2-RBI double to right by Abby Smith as the Lady Lions had climbed back capping off their four-run fourth with a Jessica Perschka RBI. <br /> <br /> Now tied 4-4, Ellingson tossed a 1-2-3 inning in the home half of the fourth giving her team a chance to take the lead in the top of the 5th, a chance the girls would not let slip away as it was Ellingson again making up for her mistake in the circle that put PC in a hole early as she doubled in a run to put Piedmont up 5-4.<br /> <br /> However, the sophomore found herself in trouble in the bottom of the 5th as Meredith loaded the bases for Lorri Cole who took an Ellingson pitch out of the park for a grand slam that handed the advantage back to Meredith, 8-5. <br /> <br /> Down to their last chance at the plate after a scoreless 6th, Piedmont would plate two runs in the top of the 7th as a a bases loaded single by Ellingson brought Christine Mobley home to cut the deficit down to two with nobody out and the bags full of Lady Lions. A sac fly from Lauren Head two batters later allowed Olivia Duncan to come home making it just a one-run game with one out to work with for the visitors. <br /> <br /> However, Meredith pitcher Amanda Beirne induced a pop up to short to end the Lady Lions' chance at a rally in the 7th and hand PC an 8-7 loss that snapped Piedmont's 18-game winning streak. With the one-run defeat, Piedmont drops a decision to a NCAA Division III member as well for the first time in 2014 as its previous two losses on the season were to NAIA member Brenau University.<br /> <br /> Needing a win in game two to avoid the sweep, Piedmont would break a scoreless tie in the top of the 4th as a Jessica Perschka groundout to third allowed Abby Smith to cross the plate just before Duncan singled up the middle to drive in a run as well. Those two runs in the 4th would be enough for the Lady Lions in the encore as senior Brittney Head did the work in the circle tossing a complete game with no runs allowed as she gave up just three hits. <br /> <br /> Head issued just one walk as well as she snapped a four-game stretch where she had not allowed a base on balls though she has only given up four walks in her last nine games pitched. The senior got the win on the mound to move to 9-1 on the season while Ellingson picked up the game one loss to fall to 14-2 as she gave up a career-high eight runs in the opening one-run loss.<br /> <br /> Duncan led the way at the plate with her 5-of-7 day as she scored two runs and drove in another while also picking up a walk and a triple in the series. Ellingson went five for eight and led the team with her three RBIs on the day while she accounted for one of four extra-base hits on the day for PC. <br /> <br /> The split puts PC at 23-3 on the season as the Lady Lions move to 13-1 in USA South action though the squad still holds the top spot in the league standings. The Lady Lions are two games up on second place Huntingdon College, a team which hosts PC on March 29th.

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