LaGRANGE, Ga. – LaGrange completed a doubleheader sweep of the Tornados by scores of 7-6 and 9-1 on Sunday afternoon.
The Panthers (12-16) held off a late charge by Brevard (5-11) to earn the one-run victory in the opening game.
Trailing 7-0 in the sixth, Brevard opened the inning with a single up the middle by Sarah Lalier. Amber Hong followed with a home run to left centerfield, plating the first Tornado runs of the game.
Jordan Hawk and Olivia Pauldin drew back-to-back walks and Brittany Franks loaded the bases with a single into right centerfield. Teegan Bullock kept the Brevard offense by reaching on a fielder's choice, scoring pinch runner Olivia Presley for the second Tornado run.
Two batters later, after a fly out to right field by Brittan Miller, Emily White crushed a grand slam home run over the left field wall, pulling Brevard within one run, 7-6. However, the threat ended with a grounder by Lalier.
Brevard had two baserunners in scoring position in the seventh, in the form of Hawk and Hong, but a strikeout and a fly out to short stop concluded the game.
White led the way for the Tornado offense in the contest, finishing 2-for-3 from the plate with four RBI and one run. She was joined in multiple hits by Hawk (2-3) and in multiple RBI by Hong (1-4, two RBI, run).
LaGrange established the lead early, scoring five in the second and two in the third to move in front 7-0. Leading the way for the Panthers' in the second inning were Madison Martin, who enjoyed a two-RBI single, and Emily Barrs who cracked a two-run home run to left centerfield.
GAME 2: LaGRANGE 9, BREVARD 1 (5 innings)
In similar fashion to the first game, LaGrange's offense established itself early as the Panthers streaked out to a 5-0 lead after the first two frames.
Two errors in the infield allowed Carolyn Harkness and Emily Barrs to reach base in the first as teammate Brittany Todd responded with a single to left to clear the bases for the 2-0 lead. Two batters later, Todd trotted home on a double to left by Taylor Tallant.
The Panthers stretched their lead to 5-0 in the second when a double to centerfield by Barrs allowed Harkness and Monica Murphy to score on the play.
Brevard's lone run of the game came in the fourth when Teegan Bullock reached base on a one-out bunt single. Paige Atkison moved Bullock to second with a single to short, where she eventually scored on a field error by the pitcher.
LaGrange got the run back in the home half of the fourth when a fielding error at first base allowed Barrs to notch the unearned run.
The Panthers emerged with their third multi-run inning of the game in the fifth, opening with a single to right centerfield by Chelsea Twardoski and Haley Coleman reaching base after being hit by a pitch.
Two batters later, with both runners in scoring position, a single to right field by Madison Martin plated Twardoski. Barrs followed with a single to left, bringing home Coleman, and Sydney Hodorff added a single down the left field line to score Harkness for the final run of the game.
The Tornados return to action on Tuesday, March 27 when they host Milligan at Ives-Lemel Field. The first game of the doubleheader will begin at 2 p.m.