GAFFNEY, S.C. - The Newberry College softball team completed competition in the Tusculum College Pioneer Classic with a 6-1 win over Tiffin and a 5-4 loss to Limestone. Newberry (5-3) beat Tiffin for the second time this weekend but couldn't hold off Limestone in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Shelley Jeffcoat (Lexington, S.C.) earned the first win of her freshman career with a seven-inning performance in which she limited Tiffin to just one run off of seven hits and struck out nine. Her record improves to 1-1 with the win.

Newberry put runs across in the first, third and fourth innings and cruised to the 6-1 victory over the Dragons.

In Newberry's second game, Amanda Huckestein (Port Charlotte, Fla.) was tagged with her first loss of the season despite holding the Lady Saints to seven hits in six and one third innings.

Felicia Taylor (Venice, Fla.) tied the game in the top of the seventh inning with a three-run home run but Limestone added another run in the bottom half to escape with the 5-4 victory.

Game One: Newberry 6, Tiffin 1 - Box Score
Newberry started its offense early in the Tiffin game after Jessie Teague (Charlotte, N.C.) reached on a Tiffin fielding error. The scarlet and gray have put their leadoff hitter on base in six out of eight games this season. A pair of sacrifices moved Teague to third base and she later scored on a wild pitch.

Newberry plated three more in the third inning after a walk, error and sacrifice bunt put runners on second and third with one out. Megan Eysen (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) singled and then advanced to second on a throw to the plate as both runners came across for Newberry. Eysen advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on a two-out single from Aissa Gatewood (North Charleston, S.C.).

Tiffin put runners on base for the first time in the bottom of the third when Alyssa Brown (Hudson, Ohio) doubled to lead the inning off. Stephanie Bobotas (Virginia Beach, Va.) singled to right field two batters later in order to score Brown.

Newberry again capitalized in the fourth inning. Richelle Mirabal (Tampa, Fla.) drew a two-out walk to bring Taylor to the plate. Taylor then drove a double which scored Mirabal all the way from first. Taylor scored later in the inning when a Tiffin fielding error kept the inning going.

Jeffcoat retired the Dragons in order in the fourth and pitched brilliantly out of jams in the late innings to earn the win.

Game Two: Limestone 5, Newberry 4 - Box Score
Newberry fell in heartbreaking fashion to the Conference Carolinas' 2009 regular-season champions in its final game of the Classic. Both teams' bats were silenced until the third inning when Huckestein drew a two-walk to keep the inning alive. Taylor's heroics shined yet again as she drove another two-out double to score Huckestein from first and put Newberry up 1-0.

Newberry loaded the bases in the fourth inning but couldn't find the timely hit to supply some insurance runs.

Limestone was more fortunate in their half of the fourth. They also loaded the bases with two outs but capitalized off of a two-RBI single from Lady Saints' pitcher Leah Quant (Charlotte, N.C.).

The Lady Saints added two more in the fifth by way of a two-run home run off the bat of Kelsey Kuykendall (Seneca Falls, N.Y.) which put Limestone up 4-1.

Newberry didn't find the answer until its final at bats in the seventh inning. The scarlet and gray put their first two hitters on base by virtue of a pair of Saints' fielding errors. Taylor then rose to the occasion yet again for Newberry as she homered to tie the game at 4-4. Taylor accounted for all four of Newberry's RBIs in the game.

Limestone unfortunately retaliated in the home-half of the seventh inning. Jenna Guse (Pearland, Texas) led off the inning with a single and advanced to second on a sacrifice. Mallory Kuykendall (Seneca Falls, N.Y.) then singled to score Guse for the game's winning run.

Huckestein was tagged with the loss in the game and fell to 3-1 on the year.

Quant went the distance and earned the win for Limestone. She allowed eight hits and struck out four in the game.

Newberry will travel to Spartanburg, S.C., next weekend to compete in the Mid-South Classic from March 5-7. Newberry will play a total of seven games over Friday, Saturday and Sunday.