It was another chilly day in Memphis, Tenn., and No. 17 Berry kept the bats of Rhodes on ice for a second-straight day as the Vikings completed the sweep of a Southern Athletic Association series by taking both ends of a doubleheader, 1-0 and 4-1, Sunday afternoon.
Game One: Berry 1, Rhodes 0
Hannah Gore dropped her ERA to 1.02 on the young season as she pitched 4.2 innings in the circle in relief, getting out of a bases loaded jam as she entered in the third. Gore would an unconventional 6-1-2 fielder's choice for a force play at the plate. In the next at-bat, Gore fell behind 3-1 in the count before rallying to get a swinging strike out to leave the bases loaded.
The game remained scoreless until the fifth when
Aleeya Thornton chopped a single to the circle, stole second, then scored on
Anna Jackson's double to the fence in right-center.
That would be enough offense for Gore, who didn't allow a hit until a double in the seventh. That runner would be eliminated by the Berry defense as Rhodes eventually left the tying run on first to close the contest.
Both teams managed six hits in the game, with
Katie White leading BC with two.
Game Two: Berry 4, Rhodes 1
The Vikings picked a pair of innings to score a pair of runs as they completed the sweep of Rhodes with a three-run victory.
In the third, three two-out hits led to the two runs for BC.
Riley Jackson would single, coming home on
Anna Jackson's RBI double one batter later. After a wild pitch moved the runner up 60-feet,
Morgan Frye continued her strong series with a double inside the bag at third, putting BC up 2-0.
Rhodes (7-4, 0-3 SAA) scored its only run of the day in the bottom of the third on a wild pitch.
In the fifth,
Katie White got the green light on a 3-0 pitch and deposited the offering over the fence in right-center for a two-run shot, giving the Vikings a 4-1 lead. That would be enough for Berry as
Blair Hall came in to pitch in relief of
Emily Whitehead. Hall gave up a hit and a walk, but earned the last nine outs to pick up the save and give the Vikings the win and the sweep.
Whitehead allowed a hit, a run, and four walks in four innings of action to start the game.
The Vikings will now take a break from SAA play and return home to face Emory in a doubleheader rescheduled from last week. First pitch on Wednesday in Mt. Berry is scheduled for 3 p.m.