Concord Takes Two Games Versus Urbana on Senior Day

ATHENS, W.Va-  The Concord University softball team picked up its third and fourth consecutive victories after defeating Urbana 4-1 and 9-1 on a rainy Friday afternoon at the CU Softball Complex.    

Concord improves to 28-22 (17-9 Mountain East Conference), while Urbana drops to 15-21 (11-15 MEC). 

Game 1: Concord 4 – Urbana 1
A three-run fourth inning helped Concord break open a scoreless game to support senior pitcher Sarah Herndon's complete-game, four strikeout performance in the circle. 

After neither team could manage a run in the first three innings, the deadlock was broken in the bottom of the fourth inning when senior outfielder Lauren Lewis singled up the middle to lead off the frame. 

Senior pitcher Allie Reid then belted a triple to right center to score Lewis from first. 

Senior third baseman Courtney Purtell continued the scoring for the Mountain Lions in the next at-bat, doubling to left field to score Reid. 

After freshman catcher Calli Van Gorden moved Purtell from second to third on a sacrifice bunt, senior pitcher/outfielder Sarah Herndon doubled home Purtell to give the Mountain Lions a 3-0 lead.  

Urbana cut the Concord lead to 3-1 in the top of the fifth inning on an RBI double from Courtney Stewart. 

However, Concord picked up an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth after Purtell tallied her second RBI of the day on a single to score sophomore outfielder Lindsey Stahl after the Brownsburg, Indiana native walked to lead off the inning before stealing second. 

Herndon notched an effective performance in the circle on Senior Day, with the Berryville, Virginia native scattering seven hits while allowing just one earned run and striking out four batters to earn her sixth win of the season and improve to 5-3 in conference matchups in 2017.    

Purtell, Lewis and sophomore pitcher/outfielder Abby Beatty each picked up two hits on the day while Reid tallied her third RBI in as many games. 

Herndon's RBI was her 11th of the season.
 
Game 2: Concord 9 – Urbana 1 
Concord scored six runs in its final three at-bats to break up a close game en route to sweeping the Blue Knights.

Concord took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning after Lewis singled to center field with two outs before Reid drove the Kearneysville, West Virginia native home on a single to center field.

Concord never looked back after the first inning, scoring single runs in both second and the third inning. 

In the bottom of the second inning, senior shortstop Alayna Furr used a fielder's choice to bring home Purtell, who reached on an error earlier in the inning. 

In the third, freshman second baseman/shortstop Jenna Witt singled up the middle to plate junior catcher/outfielder Chelsea Shepherd. 

The Mountain Lions took control of the proceedings after Furr lead off the inning with a single to third base and in the process, tied the all-time record in Concord history with 228 career hits. 

Beatty singled to center field to bring home Furr, who advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt by sophomore infielder Kylie Kent. 

Reid stepped up two batters later and drove a single to center field to score Beatty and Lewis, who singled prior to Reid. Herndon capped off the scoring in the inning with a double to right center to bring home Reid and give Concord a 7-0 lead after four innings. 

In the midst of a driving rain in the top of the sixth inning, the Blue Knights managed to get a run to cut the Concord lead to 7-1. 

Concord picked up the two runs it need to end the game in the sixth in the bottom of the frame after a lead-off walk from Reid and a double from Stahl put two runners in scoring position with no outs. Purtell then made contact to reach on a fielding error that allowed by Stahl and Reid to score and give the Mountain Lions a 9-1 win. 

Reid's three RBI tied her career high that she set on February 18, 2014 versus West Liberty. The Lovettsville, Virginia native finished 2-for-3 on the day. 

Also notching two-hit games were Lewis, Witt and Herndon. 

Witt, Herndon, Beatty, and Furr each had an RBI for Concord. 

In the circle, Reid picked up her 12^th win of the season after pitching a complete game while striking out three batters and not allowing an earned run. 

The home games were the last games at the CU Softball Complex for seniors Lauren Lewis, Allie Reid, Sarah Herndon, Courtney Purtell and Alayna Furr.