Lenoir Rhyne Wins SAC !!!!

Meredith O'Connor
Pitched a three-hit shutout in game two of L-R's sweep of Carson-Newman
(April 14, 2007)​

April 14, 2007

No. 17 Lenoir-Rhyne Softball Sweeps Carson-Newman, 5-3 And 3-0, To Win The 2007 SAC Regular Season Championship
Bears win back-to-back league titles
Hickory, N.C. - The No. 17 Lenoir-Rhyne College Softball Team (43-8, 10-4) swept Carson-Newman College (32-12, 8-6), 5-3 and 3-0, in a doubleheader Saturday afternoon at Bears Field to win the 2007 South Atlantic Conference Regular Season Championship.
The league title was Lenoir-Rhyne's second straight, third in the last four years and fourth under eight-year mentor Shena Hollar.
The Bears also won the championship in 2000, 2004 and 2006.

Game One - Lenoir-Rhyne 5, Carson-Newman 3
Junior catcher Karie Pushard (Harrisburg, N.C./Central Cabarrus HS) connected on a two-run single in the first inning while junior outfielder Jessica Luper (Fort Mill, S.C./Fort Mill HS) added a two-run home run in the fourth frame as the Bears jumped out to a 4-0 lead and held on for the win.
Carson-Newman closed the gap to 4-3 with three runs in the fifth inning thanks to Whitney Hickam's (Rossville, Ga.) RBI double and a Lenoir-Rhyne error.
However, the Bears pushed across a much-needed run in their half of the fifth on junior centerfielder Taylor Queen's (Conover, N.C./St. Stephens HS) run-scoring hit to make it a 5-3 final.
Queen finished four-for-four in the game while Luper's home run was her seventh of the season.
Bear sophomore pitcher Casey Hanes (Richmond, Va./Douglas Freeman HS) improved to 21-6 on the year after allowing just one earned run while striking out six in going the distance.
Jessie Armstrong (Buford, Ga.) fell to 14-8 with the loss for the Lady Eagles.
Box Score
Game Two - Lenoir-Rhyne 3, Carson-Newman 0
Junior Meredith O'Connor (Charlotte, N.C./Appalachian State University) pitched a three-hit shutout, her 11th of the season, to give the Bears the sweep.
O'Connor's (22-2) 11 strikeouts give her 298 for the year, a Lenoir-Rhyne and South Atlantic Conference record.
L-R freshman designated player Erin Gier (Asheville, N.C./A.C. Reynolds HS) broke the scoreless tie with an RBI double in the bottom of the fifth inning.
The Bears then made it 3-0 in the sixth inning with consecutive run-scoring hits by junior first baseman Leah Krohn (Taylorsville, N.C./Alexander Central HS) and senior second baseman Lindsay Dehart (Graham, N.C./Southern Alamance HS).
Krohn and freshman third baseman Lauren Johnson (Chesterfield, Va./Manchester HS) led L-R with two hits apiece.
Carson-Newman's Jessie Armstrong (14-9) suffered the loss once again.
Box Score
Lenoir-Rhyne hosts Belmont Abbey in the regular season finale on Tuesday with a doubleheader beginning at 2:30 p.m. Carson-Newman travels to Misenheimer, N.C., to take on Pfeiffer Sunday in a 2 p.m., doubleheader.

Athletic Contact Information: Lenoir-Rhyne College · P.O. Box 7356 · Hickory, North Carolina 28603​

Phone: (828) 328-7116 · Fax: (828) 267-3445 or (828) 328-7399
E-Mail: [email protected] (John Karrs, Lenoir-Rhyne Sports Information Director)
Copyright 2006 © www.lrbears.com​

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SAC Conference Tourney Bracket

http://thesac.athleticsite.com/weeklyrelease/Softball07bracket.pdf

 

Congratulations to Da Bears. Oustanding!!!!

On a personal note, L-R is a small community where the players in all of the sports are like family. My son is one of Meredith's favorite cheerleader. He is amazed at one she can do...yet, teases her all of the time.