Over the weekend, Rhodes College Softball hit the road to take on Millsaps College to begin SAA play. The Lynx ultimately dropped the series against the Majors, but came away with a strong win in game three, avoiding the sweep.
Game 1
Despite a strong start defensively, Rhodes found themselves in trouble in the third inning when Millsaps took the lead on a three-run home run The Lynx pitching staff, led by ace Gina Dudley, battled to keep the game close, but Millsaps continued to apply pressure, adding four more runs in the fourth inning and three in the fifth. Addie Nickelson and Emma Caplinger came in for relief appearances, working to contain the damage, but Millsaps' timely hitting proved too much to overcome.
At the plate, Rhodes struggled against Millsaps' ace Allana Vasquez, who held the Lynx to just one hit, a single from Quinn Thompson. With little offensive momentum, the Lynx were unable to capitalize on scoring opportunities ultimately falling 10-0 in game one.
Game 2
The game started as a pitching duel, with neither team scoring until the fourth inning when Millsaps took a 1-0 lead on an RBI single. Rhodes responded in the sixth, tying the game 1-1 when Jasmyn Stanley scored on a fielder's choice from Campbell Smith. However, Millsaps answered back in a big way in the bottom half of the inning, launching a solo home run to regain the lead. From there, Rhodes struggled to stop the offensive onslaught as Millsaps strung together multiple RBI hits to push the score to 8-1.
In the seventh, the Lynx fought to keep their hopes alive, loading the bases and scoring on a hit by pitch drawn by Savannah Russell, bringing the score to 8-2. Unfortunately, that was as close as they would get, as Millsaps closed out the game.
Rhodes had six hits on the day, with Savannah Russell, Kate Ledlie, Harper Allee-Press, and Madison Bromley each collecting one. Taylor Petty took the loss on the mound, pitching three innings while allowing four runs on five hits with six strikeouts Emily Pertuit and Ava Penkal also contributed innings, but Millsaps' late surge proved too much to handle.
Game 3
After two scoreless innings, Rhodes broke through in the top of the third. Kate Ledlie got things started with an RBI double, bringing Campbell Smith across the plate for the first run of the game. Harper Allee-Press followed with a two-single run, scoring Athena Gonzales and Ledlie to extend the lead to 3-0. The Lynx weren't done yet, as Peyton Rohrig added another RBI single, capping off a four-run inning.
Millsaps attempted a late comeback in the sixth inning. An RBI single put them on the board, and a sacrifice fly from cut the deficit to 4-2. However, Rhodes' defense held strong, and Catherine Miles came in for the save, pitching a scoreless seventh inning to secure the win.
Gina Dudley earned the victory, tossing six innings of three-hit ball, allowing no earned runs while walking four. Miles picked up her first save of the season with a clean seventh inning.
Offensively, Rhodes collected eight hits, led by Kate Ledlie (3-3, RBI, 2B) and Harper Allee-Press (1-3, 2 RBI) Campbell Smith and Athena Gonzales each contributed to scoring opportunities.
With the game three win, Rhodes looks to carry this momentum into their next conference series against the Sewanee Tigers in Sewanee, Tenn., this upcoming weekend.
