NEWBERRY, S.C. - The Newberry College softball team split a Saturday afternoon doubleheader with Mount Olive College, losing Game One 8-4 and winning Game Two 4-2, to move to 5-6-1 on the season. Mount Olive goes to 3-1.

Game One: Mount Olive 8, Newberry 4
The Lady Indians had a 4-2 lead after six innings, but allowed six runs in the top of the seventh to drop the first game of the twinbill.

After four and a half scoreless innings, Newberry broke the tie with a three-run rally started when freshman right-fielder Jessica Reid (Walhalla, S.C.) drew a lead-off walk. Amy Jarrell (Dover, Del.) followed that with a bunt single, and Courtney Lindler (Irmo, S.C.) drove in Reid with a single to leftfield, advancing to second on the throw home. Ginna Dean (Willow Springs, N.C.) smacked a single up the middle to plate Jarrell. The inning's scoring was wrapped up as Dean was thrown out trying to steal second, allowing Lindler to sprint home on the throw, giving Newberry the 3-0 advantage after five innings.

Mount Olive's Jenny Jackson brought the Trojans closer in the top of the sixth with a booming two-out homerun to center to bring the score to 3-2.

The Lady Indians took the lead to 4-2 in the bottom of the sixth, when pinch hitter McKenzie Phillips (Wallace, N.C.) hit a single up the middle to drive in pinch runner Allison Porter (Chapin, S.C.)

But Newberry was unable to close out the game in the lead though, as the Trojans put up six runs in the top of seventh. Courtney Wallace led things off with a single up the middle, and Kat Cahoon reched on an error. A single from Morgan Whaley loaded the bases, and Tiffanie Pittman's single through the left side scored two to tie the game. Walks issued to Bailey Harrell and Jackson, helped push the go-ahead run across, and Jamie Pruitt's bloop single to right field scored the insurance. Wallace and Cahoon drove in two more runs for the Trojans before an Erin Wilson pop-up ended the Mount Olive seventh.

Newberry tried to battle back in the home half of the inning, started by a Haley Watson (Goodlettsville, Tenn.) single and a walk by Sara Powell (Ocean Springs, Del.), but the Lady Indians were unable to push a run across to drop the game.

Mount Olive's Krystal Bourne picked up the win in one inning of relief, as Newberry's Stephanie Monette (Conway, S.C.) dropped to 2-3 on the season, pitching 6-1/3 innings allowing seven runs on nine hits, striking out one and walking two.

Game Two: Newberry 4, Mount Olive 2
In the second game, the Lady Indians started off strong and held the Trojans off for the 4-2 win.

After Lindler and Dean led off with back-to-back singles, and Newberry took advantage of two Mount Olive errors, and a two-RBI single by Kat Hammond (Irmo, S.C.) gave the Lady Indians a quick 2-0 lead.

In the second inning, the Lady Indians loaded the bases with a Watson double followed by a Jarrell infield single, and a Lindler single up the middle. Dean drove in Watson with a single through the right side and Sarah Powell (Ocean Springs, Del.) drove in Jarrell with a sacrifice fly to right, making it a 4-0 game.

Mount Olive plated one run in the third on an RBI ground-rule double from Pittman, and Whaley hit a solo homerun to left in the fourth.

Neither team was able to score in the remaining innings giving Newberry the 4-2 win.

Christina Kirby (Delmar, Del.) went the distance to pick up her third win of the season, allowing two runs on eight hits, walking two and striking out four.

The Newberry coaching staff comprised of Joe Elston and Amy Yates said they found positives in today's split.

"We’re pleased with the fact that the girls came back after the first game and remained strong through the entire second game to pick up another win. We felt like we gave the first game away, so it was nice to preserve the lead in the late innings of game two. There were several missed opportunities to score runs, where timely hitting would have really helped us put some more runs on the board. Our defense was rather inconsistent in game one, which really hurt us, but they pulled together and played much better in game two," the coaches said.

The Lady Indians complete the weekend with a 1 p.m. home doubleheader against the Pfeiffer Lady Falcons on Sunday.

  ------------------------------------------------------------
  Mount Olive College. 000 002 6 -  8 11  0      (3-0)
  Newberry College.... 000 031 0 -  4 10  1      (4-6-1)
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  Pitchers: Mount Olive College - Raynor; Bourne(6); Ermer(7). Newberry College - 
  Monette; Kirby(7). 
  Win-Bourne  Loss-Monette(2-3)  T-2:09  A-100
  HR MOC - Jackson

Newberry College 4, Mount Olive College 2
(Feb 17, 2007 at Newberry, S.C.)
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  Mount Olive College. 001 100 0 -  2  8  2      (3-1)
  Newberry College.... 220 000 X -  4  9  0      (5-6-1)
  ------------------------------------------------------------
  Pitchers: Mount Olive College - Cowdrey; Jackson(2). Newberry College - Kirby. 
  Win-Kirby(3-2)  Loss-Cowdrey  T-1:32  A-0
  HR MOC - Whaley