HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Faulkner was looking to rebound from its 1-3 Southern States Athletic Conference start this afternoon when it took on No. 7 William Carey in a division battle. The Crusaders had little trouble with Faulkner in the opener to roll the Lady Eagles 5-0 before rallying in the bottom of the seventh to secure the sweep with a 4-3 victory in the nightcap.

William Carey posted three runs in the second inning and two more in the fifth to earn the shutout in game one.

Missy Duke (5-4) scattered nine hits over six innings and gave up four earned runs while striking out seven in the loss.

The Crusaders dotted three runs over four innings in Game 2 before the Lady Eagles responded. Faulkner posted a single run in each of the last three innings to pull the event into a tie going into the final at-bat.

With one out on the board the Crusaders' Hannah Cook-Kelley ripped a triple to deep center and scored just moments later on a missed catch in the outfield.

Amy Page was 2-for-2 in the second game and scored a run. Tori Hollis was 2-for-3 and Heather Smith was 2-for-4. Abbie Pierce was 1-for3 with an RBI and Haley Munroe went 1-for-4 and scored a run.

Mattie Dotson (1-8) allowed 10 hits and three earned runs in six and two thirds innings of work.

Seven of Faulkner's last eight losses have been by a single run and three of those were in the final at-bat of the event.

"We're right there," said head coach Hal Wynn. "It's frustrating because we know we can compete. We are playing with some of the top teams in the country and doing well. We've got to tighten up our defense and stop making simple mistakes. We also need to start being more consistent at the plate. It's taking longer than we'd hoped, but when it clicks, we're going to see what we're capable of."

Faulkner (6-12/1-5) will try to click this weekend as it enters the SSAC Cross Division Tournament. The Lady Eagles will take on the seven east division teams over three days. Faulkner opens with Truett-McConnell at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga. The event is scheduled for noon.