MT. VERNON, Ga. -- The Martin Methodist Softball team won its second and third straight SSAC conference matchups with a sweep at Brewton-Parker (Ga.) College Friday afternoon.
The RedHawks (12-15, 4-6 SSAC) earned an 8-5 victory in the opener and followed up with a 9-4 win in the second contest.
The wins were critical for the RedHawks, who head to Brunswick, Georgia on Saturday for a doubleheader against College of Coastal Georgia.
First pitch in Saturday's opener is set for Noon.
Martin Methodist 8, Brewton-Parker 5:
Martin Methodist scored two runs in the fourth to tie the ballgame and then surged ahead with three more in the seventh to get the series started with a win on Friday.
After the home side scored five runs in the game's first two innings, the RedHawks saw themselves trailing 5-3 as they entered the fourth.
The RedHawks led off the inning with a pair of singles, but a groundout and sacrifice bunt put the possibility of the potential runs in doubt. But Caylee Porter delivered a clutch double to center that plated the pair and knotted the ballgame at 5-5.
The game remained scoreless until the top of the seventh when the RedHawks broke the contest open with three runs.
After Kaitlyn Andrin reached via error, Porter once again delivered a clutch at-bat as the sophomore cranked a first-pitch fastball over the wall to put the RedHawks ahead by a pair.
Raegan Hannah added a two-out RBI single to give the RedHawks some breathing room in the frame.
The added insurance was a relief, but not entirely necessary for Riley Fleming (2-1), who retired three straight to pick up the win in the circle.
Fleming was superb in her five innings of relief work as the freshman did not allow a hit and struck out four. The win marked the first for Fleming in over a month, with her first career win coming versus Brescia (Ky.) College on Feb. 26.
Martin Methodist 9, Brewton-Parker 4:
Martin Methodist used a three-run fifth inning and added two more in the seventh to claim a 9-4 win and a series sweep of Brewton-Parker.
The RedHawks exploded for four runs in the game's first inning, but allowed the home side to tie the contest at 4-4 in the bottom of the third.
But the game broke for the RedHawks in the fifth when Callie Pendley stroked a one-out, RBI double to left field and Reagan Hannah promptly followed with a two-run homer to push the RedHawk lead to 7-4.
Pendley and Hannah extended the RedHawk lead in the eighth when Pendley stroked a one-out triple and then scored on Hannah's double to left. Jordan Smith entered as a runner for Hannah and eventually came around to score and give the RedHawks a commanding lead.
Katie Davenport (3-3) picked up her second straight win in the circle as she lasted 5.2 innings and struck out four batters. All four earns were charged to Davenport, while Deanna Stevens claimed the final four outs of the ballgame for her first career save.
