Wesleyan Softball Splits with Peace

Meredith Mize, courtesy of C Cline
Meredith Mize, courtesy of C Cline

ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. - The NC Wesleyan College softball team split their conference DH with William Peace University from Edge Field on a chilly Thursday.

Wesleyan dominated the first game winning 9-1 in 5 innings behind 13 hits. Unfortunately, Peace shut down the Bishops 6-3 in game two.

GAME 1: NCWC 9, WPU 1

Senior pitcher Beth Braswell got the Bishops off to a good start as she crushed a two-run homer over the right field wall in the first inning. Wesleyan then added two more runs in the 2nd inning on back-to-back RBI singles from LF Logan Winstead and SS Meredith Mize.

An RBI triple from CF Nichole Mooney was then followed by consecutive RBI doubles from Winstead and Mize in the 4th to plate Wesleyan to a 7-1 lead. RBI singles from Mooney and Mize then put the game out of reach at 9-1 in the 5th inning.

Mize and freshman catcher MK Raynor led the Bishops with three-hit games including two doubles from Raynor. Braswell pitched all 5 innings allowing just one run on 3 hits, a walk, and six strikeouts improving to 7-2 on the year.

GAME 2: WPU 6, NCWC 3

A low-scoring second game saw WPU score on a groundout in the first inning and then proceed to no-hit the Bishops until the 7th when the rivals combined to score 8 runs. 

Peace would put the game away in the 7th scoring 5 runs on a a sac fly, a two-run home run and some Bishop errors to take a 6-0 lead. Wesleyan then rallied in the bottom half punctuated by a three-run homer from sophomore DH Makayla Himes. Her homer scored Mize and Winstead who had singled and reached via error. The home run was Himes' 2nd and she is now hitting .467 on the year, one of three Bishops hitting over .400 with the others being Mize and Winstead.

Senior pitcher Grace Preston pitched well for 6 innings allowing only a run until the Pacers got to her in the 7th. She finished allowing 7 hits and 6 runs (4 earned) on 6 walks and 3 streikouts. 

Wesleyan goes to 9-7 on the year and 5-1 in the USA South's East Division while WPU sits at 6-12 and 3-1 in division.

The Lady Bishops will return to action on Saturday with a tough road trip to Pfeiffer University.