Monday, March 30, 2009

BECKHAM’S BLAST DOWNS WESLEYAN IN DOUBLEHEADER

An extra innings loss capped a disappointing Great South Athletic Conference opener as Wesleyan College dropped both ends of a double header to league leading Maryville College on Monday night.

In the opener, Maryville (10-12, 3-1 GSAC) took advantage of a crucial Wesleyan error after Chastity Smith and Alana Von Hoy put together back-to-back RBI singles in a three-run second inning. The Scots would extend the lead to seven runs as they cruised to a 7-1 victory in game one. The loss spoiled a 3-for-3 effort from leadoff hitter Belle Thomas for the Pioneers (1-16, 0-2 GSAC).

Katie Beckham’s home run in the eighth inning ended the Pioneers hope of an upset, falling in game two, 3-1. The Pioneers and the Scots traded runs in the first inning. Thomas sparked the Wesleyan offense, taking advantage of a hit-by-pitch and sacrifice fly by DaLin Gillis to score. A pitcher’s duel ensued for the remainder of the game with Sarah Reeder limiting Wesleyan to just two more hits and Cheyenne Siebenaler allowing 10 hits over the course of the game before falling victim to Beckham’s blast.

“I’m really proud of our girl’s effort today,” stated Wesleyan Head Coach Shannon Fevella. “I was pleased at how we bounced back from the loss in the first game to take them to extra innings in the second. Maryville is the best we’re going to see and we played with them, so it hurts to lose in extra innings, but it’s also promising because we are showing significant improvement.”

The Pioneers return to the field on Wednesday, April 1 when they travel to Piedmont College to make up a doubleheader that was postponed last week due to inclement weather. First pitch is at 5:00pm.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

WESLEYAN SOFTBALL PICKS UP FIRST WIN OF SEASON

The Pioneers of Wesleyan College picked up their first win of the season on Wednesday night, defeating Southern Wesleyan University 3-2 in 10 innings. Wesleyan lost the second game of the doubleheader 4-0.

In the day’s first game, senior pitcher DaLin Gillis carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning for the Pioneers (1-14) before giving up her first hit of the game to freshman pinch hitter Christy Hudson. Hudson’s single allowed the Lady Warriors to score the first run of the game, but Wesleyan would answer at the bottom of the inning with an RBI single by Gillis that scored Brittany Jones.

In the tenth inning, Southern Wesleyan (9-15) had runners on second and third with only one out, but the Pioneers defense was able to hold the runners and get out of the inning without allowing the Lady Warriors to score. Southern Wesleyan pitcher Teann Pilgrim began the bottom of the tenth inning with a strikeout, but the Pioneer offense would respond in their very next at bat. Sophomore Belle Thomas singled to right field, which allowed senior Maddie Allsup, who was placed at second base at the beginning of the inning, to score the game’s winning run.

Gillis finished the game with eight strikeouts, while allowing only three hits and walking two.

“I’m extremely proud of our girls for their effort today,” stated Wesleyan Head Coach Shannon Fevella. “DaLin played great giving us the no-hitter through seven innings, and we were able to dig deep and pull out the win.”

In the second game, Southern Wesleyan’s Breanna McMillan scored a run in the second inning to give the Lady Warriors an early lead that they would maintain throughout the game. They would add three more runs during the seventh inning to put the Pioneers away for good. Wesleyan was able to generate only five hits during the game and once again struggled to find their rhythm on offense.

The Pioneers return to the diamond on Wednesday, March 25, when they travel to Piedmont College to begin Great South Athletic Conference action in a doubleheader beginning at 5:00pm.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Wesleyan Softball Returns to the Diamond Against Southern Wesleyan

After a lay-off of nearly two weeks, the Wesleyan College (0-13) softball team returns to action on Wednesday when they face off with the Warriors of Southern Wesleyan University (8-14).

In a doubleheader played earlier this season, Wesleyan lost to Southern Wesleyan 5-4 and 6-2. The Pioneers had opportunities to pull out a victory in both games but came up a little short; however, Wesleyan finished the day with a total of 16 hits and found an offensive rhythm that had been missing prior to those games.

The Warriors are led offensively by senior second baseman Lauren Angel, who is pacing Southern Wesleyan with a 0.390 batting average and 16 hits. From the mound, junior Breanna McMillan has taken control with a 1.33 ERA and 31 strikeouts over the course of seven games.

The Pioneers will look to junior pitcher Cheyanne Siebenaler to give them a lift both from the mound and at the plate. Siebenaler leads Wesleyan with a 0.300 batting average and has accumulated nine hits over the course of the season.

First pitch is at 4:00pm at the Mathews Athletic Complex and admission is free.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Wesleyan Scores High Marks at GSU Hunt Seat Show

Wesleyan's hunt seat riders made a good showing at Georgia Southwestern University this past weekend.

On Saturday, sophomores Christy Mann and Alexa Kister both finished 6th in Intermediate Fences. Kister also earned 4th place in Intermediate Flats. Junior Naeemah Johnson and sophomore Lorikim Morris rounded out the first day of competition with 2nd and 3rd place finishes, respectively, in the Walk/Trot.

On Sunday, Mann bested her previous day's scores with 4th place in Intermediate Fences and 2nd place in Intermediate Flats. Similarly, Kister picked up a 5th place finish in intermediate Fences. Johnson remained consistent with another 2nd place ribbon in the Walk/Trot, while senior Amanda Dotson placed 5th in the Advanced Walk/Trot/Canter.

Wesleyan was ranked 7th on the first day of competition, and rose to 5th place by the end of the show.