EMCC Lady Lions sweep Mississippi Delta, 8-1 and 10-2, for second division softball sweep in as many days

SCOOBA – The Lady Lions of East Mississippi Community College completed their second MACJC North Division softball sweep in as many days by knocking off visiting Mississippi Delta Community College, 8-1 and 10-2, Wednesday afternoon at the EMCC Softball Field.    

Coupled with their dominating 16-0, 18-0 road sweep over Coahoma Community College the day prior, the Lady Lions outscored division foes Delta and Coahoma by a composite margin of 52-3 and out-hit the opposition 36-8 collectively over the two days.

In Wednesday's opening game against MDCC, the Lady Lions gave up an unearned run in the first inning but came back with four runs on five hits in the bottom half of the frame.  A two-run double by Anna McCrary preceded back-to-back, two-out RBI singles by Marissa Landrum and Amandalyn Abney.       

On the heels of an RBI double by Kasey Stanfield in the fifth, EMCC added three more runs the next inning off Delta starting pitcher Sara Gunther.  Pepper Baker's run-scoring single and a two-run single from Heather Abney provided the final margin.

In the circle for EMCC, freshman left-hander Valiree Blair notched her first collegiate win with the complete-game victory.  The Richland High School product scattered three hits over seven innings while striking out seven and walking just one.

Offensively in game one, EMCC's nine-hit team effort was led by Heather Abney's three-hit outing.

As in the opening game, the visitors scored first during the nightcap on an RBI double by Gabbie Smith off Lady Lion starting pitcher Chandler Ellis.

The home team promptly tied the game in the bottom of the first and added another run the next frame to move ahead 2-1.  The Lady Lions then reached the eight-run, mercy-rule margin in the third by plating six runs on seven hits while sending 11 batters to the plate.  Whitney Lowe stroked a two-run single in front of successive run-scoring singles by Baker, Kristen Mitchell and Heather Abney.

After Delta scored an unearned run in the top of the fifth, EMCC responded quickly by getting the run back on Emily Patrick's game-ending RBI single that again made it an eight-run margin.

With nine more hits as a team in the nightcap, the Lady Lions had two-hit outings by Mitchell and Patrick.

In East Mississippi's fourth consecutive complete-game victory as a pitching staff, freshman right-hander Chandler Ellis improved to 2-4 on the season.  The Vicksburg native allowed four hits over five innings.

Improving to 8-12 overall and 6-4 in division play with the consecutive doubleheader sweeps, head coach Kyndall White's EMCC Lady Lions are scheduled to play a road doubleheader against Itawamba Community College Saturday afternoon (1 p.m.) in Fulton.  EMCC's next home softball action is slated for Monday with a scheduled 3 p.m. twin bill against rival Meridian Community College on the Scooba campus.