For the 20th time in the past 24 years, the No. 21 Lenoir-Rhyne Softball Team earned win number 30 on the season in a split with Emory & Henry of a home doubleheader on Wednesday afternoon. The Bears won game one, 4-2 but dropped the second contest, 5-3.

In game one, Morgan Beeler dominated in the circle to improve to 17-3 on the year. After giving up a two-run homer in the top of the fourth, she bounced back and put up three zeroes to close out the win. Beeler finished with 12 strikeouts and allowed five hits and a walk.

Julia Mardigian drove in the first run of the day on a grounder that got passed the second basemen to score Kaylan Brown. Erin Lookabill executed a double steal to help LR manufacture the tying run. Down 2-1, Lookabill stole second and the catcher’s throw rolled into center field to allow Cassidy Wall to score.

Brown drove in Lookabill with a two-out RBI which turned out to be the game-winning RBI to put the Bears up 3-2. Lora Beth Wood smacked a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth to add an insurance run.

Avery Adkins took the loss in the circle for E&H, tossing six innings and allowing three earned runs. Adkins didn’t walk a batter but allowed eight hits in her six innings of work.

In game two, Brooklin Heavner earned the start in the circle and gave up a pair of runs in three innings of work but both of those runs were unearned. The Bears got one run in the bottom of the first as Talon LaClair grounded into a double play.

Two errors in the top of the third gave the Wasps a pair of runs but LR answered in the bottom of the inning. Mardigian drove in one with a single and LaClair added an RBI ground out. The score would remain 3-2 until the top of the sixth where the guests put a 3-spot on the board. Faith Carrigan was replaced by Beeler who tried to close it out but the Wasps pushed three across with one being charged to Beeler and two to Carrigan.

Carrigan took the loss in the circle and Adkins threw seven more innings and allowed three earned runs.

The Bears drop into a three-way tie in second place with a 12-6 league mark. LR, Carson-Newman and LMU are all tied at 12-6 and the Bears play both of those opponents in the next couple of weeks. LR has just two home games left on the regular season slate.

The Bears are 17-3 at home on the season. One of the seasons LR didn’t reach 30 wins in Shena Hollar’s 24-year tenure was the COVID-shortened 2020 season (LR was 20-4) and the 2021 season where LR played just 33 games (went 17-16).

The Bears earned all-time win 1,198 this afternoon. This was the first all-time win for Emory & Henry against LR in just the fourth game of the head-to-head series.

This was the first game in ten days as weather effect the Bears series schedule for last Friday at Lincoln Memorial. Even through the Bears did not play, they moved up one spot to No. 21 in this week’s NFCA Coaches Poll.

Lenoir-Rhyne is 30-8 overall, 12-6 in the South Atlantic Conference. LR will travel to Newberry on Saturday. First-pitch is scheduled for 2:00 PM.