MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Faulkner (10-9, 2-4 SSAC) picked up a pair of wins over Blue Mountain (9-11, 2-4 SSAC) as the hosts found clutch plays, especially from
Anna Purvis, and
Katelynn Inness picked up two wins in the circle Thursday afternoon at Wynn Field in SSAC action. The Lady Eagles picked up a 5-1 win in the opener before rallying for a 6-4 win in the second.
FAULKNER 5, BLUE MOUNTAIN 1
Colby Adams broke the deadlock in the fifth inning with a double to left center to put Faulkner in a 2-0 lead, capitalizing on a hit by pitch and a throwing error to score
Ivey Hill and
Jordan Boyd who ran for
AnnaMarie Stooksbury.
Inness left two Toppers stranded in the top of the sixth and was thanked with an RBI single from
Erika Mitchell to cash in an
Anna Purvis leadoff single and
Gracie Pittman sacrifice bunt. The next at bat,
Ivey Hill launched her first home run of her Faulkner career over the right centerfield fence to grow the lead to 5-0.
A bases loaded walk brought a run in for the Toppers in the seventh as they tried to rally late, but Inness coaxed a popup that Purvis handled to end the game with bases loaded and the tying run at the plate.
Inness struck out eight and allowed just five hits in the win. Purvis accounted for half of the team's hits going 3-3 in the first game.
FAULKNER 6, BLUE MOUNTAIN 4
The Lady Eagles twice trailed by two, including entering the bottom of the sixth with a 4-2 deficit, but Purvis and Mitchell delivered the key hits to sweep the conference doubleheader. Three straight singles from
Jordan Boyd,
Kaileigh Harrison and
Chloe Davidson loaded the bases with one out to set the stage for Purvis, the former Topper, to drop a single down the right field line to tie the game, scoring Boyd and Harrison. With two outs,
Erika Mitchell delivered what proved to be the game winning hit bringing Davidson and Purvis home.
Inness, who entered as the third different pitcher in the game, worked around a leadoff single in the seventh to shut the door and earn her second win of the day.
The Toppers took a 1-0 lead in the third and added another run to it in the fifth before Faulkner answered with Davidson coming home on a Mitchell batted ball and Purvis the next at bat with Stooksbury's contact to tie it. However the Toppers replied right away with two runs in the top of the sixth to turn the pressure back on the Lady Eagles.
Purvis continued her stellar day going 2-2 in the second game with two RBIs, giving her a 5-5 day with three runs scored and two RBIs.
The trio of Faulkner pitchers combined for just four strikeouts but limited the damage of nine hits and five walks scattered throughout. Inness picked up both wins on the day to improve to 4-4 on the season.
The Lady Eagles take on Stillman in an SSAC doubleheader Saturday at 2 p.m. at home.
