SALISBURY, N.C. — The Catawba Indians were able to snag the split against UVA Wise on Thursday, April 14 from a late 6th inning rally led by Bailey Benton in Game 2.
GAME BY GAME
In Game 1, The UVA Wise Cavaliers (16-16, 8-12 SAC) powered by the Catawba Indians (5-31, 1-21 SAC) early with the help of a Jenna McDermott two-run single to the left side.
The Cavs would hold off the Indians until the third inning when Carter would smash a home run to cut the score in half, 2-1.
Kara Long decided to catapult UVA Wise to a 5-1 lead after she went yard in the fourth and brought in two runs with her.
As the Cavs took defense in the bottom of the fourth, an error in left field led the way for Benton to take charge with a two-run home run to put the Indians at a two-run deficit. A Catawba back-to-back single and double allowed another Indian to reach home plate, making it a one-run game.
Catawba and UVA Wise held each other off for two innings before Long yet again came up big to score another Cav run. The Indians couldn't get a ball past Cavalier defense in the bottom of the inning.
The Cavaliers seemingly secured their victory as RBI singles each from Mady Buchanan and Abagail Mills put the score at 8-4 in the top of the seventh. The Indians produced an RBI triple from Kristin Hales in the bottom of the inning but were eventually held off to give the Cavs an 8-5 win.
In a high-scoring Game 2, UVA Wise found themselves with a four-run lead in the first in part by two Catawba errors.
The lead lasted for barely a half-inning as Catawba's Brittany Ireland smacked an RBI single to get the Indians on the board. Heavy-hitter Courtnee Carter came up to bat next and left a mark — a two-out, three-run homer to even the score at 4.
After an impressive offensive showing from the Cavaliers' Mallory McKnight, Alexis Miles, and Haley Finney in the second inning, UVA Wise had gained a five-run advantage on the Indians by the middle of the third inning.
With the talents of Carter and Hale once again, the Indians had squashed their deficit to only two runs at the end of the third.
Cavalier bats went quiet in the fourth, giving a primetime slot for Catawba to get closer to the Cavalier lead. An Ireland homer and a Carter single did just that — tying the score at 10.
With the help of a Cloey Bailey and Benton hit each, the score was tied once again 11-11 going into the sixth.
It was an RBI from Grace Bennett that pushed the Indians over the Cavs in the bottom of the inning. A Savanna Balderston single and a Hales two-run double gave Catawba a four-run lead before shutting the Cavs out in the final half-inning.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Long led the Cavs with an impressive four RBIs in Game 1 of the doubleheader. The team combined for a total of 12 hits compared to Catawba's seven.
In Game 2, McKnight and Bailey each put up three RBIs from a combined three hits. The team put up 11 hits in Game 2 but Catawba snagged double with 22 hits.
Game 1 WP: McKenna Falwell (9-6)
Game 2 WP: Salem Finney (3-10)
