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Box Score 2
by Kevin Buczek
WILSON, N.C.-Junior Autumn Pittman, sophomore Haley Baxley and freshmen Liz White combined to toss a pair of complete-game shutouts in leading the Barton College softball team to an 11-0 and 2-0 non-conference doubleheader sweep of visiting Elizabeth City State University on Sunday afternoon at Jeffries Field.
The Lady Bulldogs extended their win streak to five games and moved to 12-24 on the season. The Vikings finished their season at 3-24.
Barton will conclude its 2013 campaign with a rescheduled non-conference doubleheader against Southeast Region foe UNC Pembroke on Wednesday. The twin bill at Jeffries Field is slated to start at 2:45 p.m.
GAME ONE: Barton 11, Elizabeth City State 0 (5 innings)
Pittman earned her second straight starting win of the week and Baxley hurled a 1-2-3 fifth inning as the duo combined for a three-hit shutout. Pittman (4-10) went four strong innings and fanned a season-high 10 batters including the first three Vikings to set the tone for the contest.
Pittman and Baxley got plenty of run support after a scoreless first for Barton to win by the eight-run rule in just five innings. The Lady Bulldogs opened up the scoring in the second with three runs. The frame featured a pair of doubles by seniors Rebecka Morgan and Taylor Barker, who both scored. Freshman Rachel Jordan capped the opening surge with a painful RBI by being hit in the helmet with a pitch with the bases loaded.
Morgan led off the third with a single and later scored on a wild pitch. Morgan was 2-for-2 with a walk and three runs scored.
Barton pulled away with seven runs in the bottom of the fourth. Pittman helped her own cause with a two-run double over the center fielder before junior Alex Baylis added her own two-run double. Barker and senior Elizabeth Webb completed the Lady Bulldogs offensive outburst with a pair of RBI-singles.
The Royal Blue and White belted 11 total hits with Baylis pacing Barton going a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. Barker, Morgan and Webb all had two base knocks.
GAME TWO: Barton 2, Elizabeth City State 0
White hurled seven dominating innings and a pair of early runs proved enough as Barton defeated ECSU for a fourth time on the season. White (4-9) also had a season-high strikeout total fanning 13 Vikings.
Elizabeth City State struggled against White the whole game and had to resort to bunts for its first two hits. A bunt in traffic by Danielle Horn in the third broke up White's attempt at second no-hitter on the season but she was quickly eliminated on a rare 1-4-6-5 sac bunt double play when Horn got greedy and tried to advance to third on the play.
White faced the minimum through six innings and had one stretch of eight consecutive K's before a play at the plate preserved the shutout in the seventh. Cristen Pelton had the Vikings second hit, another bunt, but then was thrown out trying to score on a single by Samantha Craig. Barton sophomore right fielder Alyssa Spell did a good job tracking down the only ECSU ball hit to the outfield and quickly tossing the ball to second base to keep Craig to a single. Jordan then made an accurate relay throw to senior catcher Amanda Schatz, who applied the tag onto Pelton trying to advance home.
Barton got its runs early scoring one run in both the first and second. Sophomore Emily Leagon hit a seeing-eyed single through the right side of the infield to score White for the first run. Sophomore Kristen Moore led off the second with a double in the right field gap and scoring on a Spell single up the middle.
The Lady Bulldogs only had one hit after the second inning, a single by freshman Samantha Bass in the fourth, but the Vikings defense made several nice plays in the infield to keep Barton from running up the score for a second time.
Both White and Pittman now have seven complete games on the season with White recording her third shutout.
