The University of Pikeville softball team split a doubleheader with Alice Lloyd College on Thursday afternoon. Both games were decided by a single run, with the Bears taking the opener 2-1 and falling in the finale 4-3.
UPIKE(14-9) will be back in action on Saturday when it visits Johnson University in Knoxville, Tenn.
Bears 2, Eagles 1: The Bears scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to get the win.
The runs scored on a two-out triple by sophomore Haleigh Jones to plate Eilish Neff and Sam Case. Case had reached on a single to left and Neff was on to run for Zoe Keeton, who had walked.
Alice Lloyd scored its only run in the third inning on a two-out triple by sophomore Ellie Keene. She plated freshman Rachael Rife, who reached on a one-out single.
Freshman Chloe Bryant (2-1) got the win for the Bears. She pitched three innings in relief, striking out six and allowing only a single hit.
The Bears had five hits in the win, with two coming from Jones. Case, Amber Triplett and Zoe Ingram had hits, with Triplett's being a double.
The Eagles had five hits as well. In addition to the safeties by Keene and Rife, they got a double from Maleigh McDaniel and singles by Alexis Morris and Lyndsey Adkins.
Eagles 4, Bears 3: Alice Lloyd jumped out to a 4-0 lead and held on to win the nightcap.
The Eagles scored three times in the top of the second inning. Senior Baylee Cox plated the first two on a single to left to score Chloe Taylor and Katie Deeds. She scored when Rife singled to left.
They added a single run in the fourth when Taylor doubled to score Mackenzie Methax, who was on as a pinch runner.
The Bears cut into the lead in the bottom of the fifth when junior Lillie Kluesner reached on an infield single. Jones then singled to center and Kluesner scored on a throwing error.
It stayed that way until the bottom of the seventh. With the bases loaded, a wild pitch scored Katelyn Bird, and when the throw to the plate sailed past the pitcher, Case scored as well.
That made it 4-3, but the Bears were unable to score the tying run.
Kluesner had half of UPike's four hits. Jones and Alyssa Franklin added singles.
Alice Lloyd had nine hits in the win, with Taylor having three of them.
Kursten Napier went the first five innings and got the win. She allowed three hits and an unearned run. Cox got the last out for the save, her first of the season.
Kelsie Hardester (6-3) took the loss for the Bears.
--UPIKE--
