Katelyn Rackard hit a pair of home runs as the No. 22 Lenoir-Rhyne Softball team hit five home runs in all in the sweep of visiting UVA Wise in a doubleheader. The Bears won game one, 9-2 and game two, 6-2. Lauren Rakes, Cassidy Wall and Lora Beth Wood also hit bombs. Rackard and Wood had six hits apiece today as the Bears won 9-2 and 6-2 on the afternoon. Morgan Beeler and Brooklin Heavner got wins in the circle as Beeler struck out a season-high 11 batters and Heavner had a career-high seven punch outs.

In game one, each team struck for a pair of runs in the first inning before Rakes broke the game open with a three-run home run in the bottom of the third. LR continued to hit the long ball as Wood hit a two-run shot in the fourth and Rackard hit a solo shot in the 5th.

Wood’s 4th hit of the game bought in her fourth RBI as the Bears took a 9-2 lead which was the final score. Rakes joined Wood with four RBIs as the duo had eight of the nine runs batted in.

Rackard added three hits as all but one starter had base knock in the contest. Beeler moved to 16-3 as the senior stuck out a season-high 11 hitters. Beeler allowed just three hits and two runs in the complete game victory.

In game two, after the Cavs scored an unearned in the first, Wall’s two-run single gave the Bears the lead at 2-1. Wood’s 5th hit and 5th RBI of the day gave the Bears a 3-1 lead in the 3rd.
Wall then hit her 6th homerun of the season to stretch the lead to 5-2 in the 5th.

Rackard finished the scoring with a solo shot in the 6th. Heavner (3-0) get her third start of the year went the distance for her first complete game of her career. Heavner allowed just two runs (one earned) while striking out a career-high seven.

LaClair extended her hitting streak to seven games with doubles in each game. Rackard had three hits in each game while Wood had four hits in the first game and a pair in the night cap as the duo each had six hits on the day. It was Wood’s 10th and 11th multi-hit games as five Bears have had at least 11 multi-hit games this season.

Mother Nature has been a tough opponent for the Bears lately as this is the fourth straight series moved due to weather. This doubleheader was originally schedule for Saturday but rain/wind caused a delay until Sunday. A year ago today, the Bears swept UVA-Wise in their first ever trip to Wise. LR won 5-0 and 8-2 on the afternoon. LR leads the all-time series 8-2 after the sweep.

The Bears are closing in on their 1200th victory as the program won their 1196th and 1197th all-time games. Beeler crossed the 400 innings pitched and 400 career strikeouts with today’s outing.

LaClair’s two doubles moved her into fifth place all-time with 55 doubles.

The Bears improve to 29-9 overall, 11-5 in the South Atlantic Conference. Lincoln-Memorial will host the Bears in a key SAC doubleheader on Friday. First-pitch is schedule for 2:00 PM