WISE, Va- The Concord University softball team dropped a pair of tight contests to UVa.-Wise in a clash of two regionally-ranked teams on Wednesday afternoon.
Concord drops to 28-24 overall (17-10 MEC), while UVa.-Wise improves to 29-15 (19-8 MEC).
Game 1: UVa.-Wise 3 – Concord 0
Concord could not score a run off UVa.-Wise's Emily Kale as it fell by three runs.
The Cavaliers picked up two runs in the first inning to take a 2-0 lead in the first inning after Alexa Hernandez hit a solo home run followed by an Olivia Cleary RBI double.
The Mountain Lions managed to get two runners on in the top fourth inning with one out, but couldn't punch the tying runs in.
After UVa.-Wise extended its lead to 3-0 in the fifth inning, Concord once again threatened to tie the game after sophomore outfielder/pitcher
Abby Beatty hit a double to left field. Senior pitcher
Allie Reid then reached on an error with two outs, before sophomore outfielder
Lindsey Stahl was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
However, Kale got out of the jam to preserve the 3-0 lead for the Cavaliers.
CU managed five hits, with Beatty, senior outfielder
Lauren Lewis, Reid, Stahl and senior pitcher / outfielder
Sarah Herndon, each tallying a hit.
Herndon (6-9) was charged with the loss in the circle, striking out two hitters and giving up two earned runs over seven innings.
Game 2: UVa.-Wise 2 – Concord 1
Concord could not hold off UVa.-Wise after taking an early lead as the Cavaliers received a two-home run from Samantha Ely in the third.
Concord managed a 1-0 lead in the early going after an error by the Cavaliers allowed sophomore infielder
Kylie Kent to reach in the first inning before advancing on a groundout by Beatty. Lewis then stepped up to the plate and singled to center field to score Kent and give Concord a 1-0 lead after one.
The score remained 1-0 until the third inning, when Ely hit a two-run home run to give the Highland Cavaliers a 2-1 lead.
The Cavaliers managed to hold on the rest of the way, limiting CU without a hit for the remainder of the game for a 2-1 win.
Lewis's RBI was her 28
th of the season while Concord's only other hit of the day came courtesy of senior shortstop
Alayna Furr.
Furr's hit was the 229
th of her career, breaking the all-time record at Concord previously held by
Alyssa Morris.
Reid (12-8) took the loss in the circle for Concord as she fanned four batters and scattered five hits.
The Mountain Lions wrap up Mountain East Conference play on Saturday at Glenville State before playing West Virginia Wesleyan on Sunday.
