May 8, 2008

Final Stats

PEMBROKE, N.C. - Lakyn Bendle's (Amsterdam, Ohio) "suicide squeeze" with no outs in the bottom of the seventh capped a dramatic, three-run rally by Francis Marion, as the fifth-seeded Patriots knocked off top-seeded Carson-Newman 4-3 in Game 7 of the 2008 South Atlantic Regional Tournament.

Bendle bunted the first pitch she saw from C-N starter Zoe Heim (Gallatin, Tenn.), giving Nicole Reuter (Temecula, Calif.) just enough time to score the game-winning run.

Francis Marion (35-13) advances to Friday's winner's bracket final to face the winner of No. 6 North Georgia and No. 7 Armstrong Atlantic State. Carson-Newman (49-7) will face second-seeded and host UNC Pembroke on Friday at 11 a.m.

Carson-Newman jumped out to a 1-0 lead on the strength of a solo home run by junior Elisha Collins (Rutledge, Tenn.).

The blast, her fourth of the season, concluded a bizarre at bat. Collins took the previous pitch off the top of her batting helmet, but was she called for being in the strike zone, and the pitch stood as only a ball. The Rutledge, Tennessee-native promptly drove the next pitch out to left, giving the Lady Eagles the one-run lead.

Francis Marion tied the game in the bottom of the fourth.

Carson-Newman appeared to be out of the inning when Patriots' second baseman Allie Aleman (Santa Ana, Calif.) chopped a two out ground ball to C-N third baseman Mandy Stevens (Knoxville, Tenn.), but her throw sailed high, allowing Michaela Wolf (Littleton, Colo.) to score from first.

The Lady Eagles bounced back with two unearned runs in the top of the sixth to grab a 3-1 lead. Stevens and first baseman Sara Little (Calhoun, Ga.) each delivered two-out, RBI singles to move C-N ahead.

Stevens, a senior, laced a line drive to left scoring centerfielder Whitney Kee (Knoxville, Tenn.) to retake the lead. Little followed by delivering a line drive right back up the box, her first hit of the game. The hit plated pinch runner Amber Hewitt (Ringgold, Ga.), who was running for Whitney Hickam (Knoxville, Tenn.). Hickam reach

Heim hit lead-off batter Jessie Alesi (Elk Grove Village, Ill.) with her first pitch of the inning. After a sacrifice bunt moved Alesi up a bag, shortstop Shannan Tyson (Seminole, Fla.) drilled a line drive to Kee, who had her played perfectly, and doubled up a leaning Alesi for the inning-ending double play.

Francis Marion's Kat Beauvais (Manassas, Va.) started the game-winning rally in the Patriots' final at-bat, driving a ball down the third-base line and beating out Steven's throw to first. After a single by Alesi made it runners on first and second with no outs, Reuter came in to pinch hit and drove a deep ball over the head of centerfielder Kee to score Beauvais. Shannon Tyson (Seminole, Fla.) followed with a single to bring in Alesi and tie the game.

Zoe Heim took the loss for Carson-Newman, falling to 31-6 on the year.