LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Randolph College softball team rallied from being down by four in the second game to complete an Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) doubleheader sweep of Guilford College in action Wednesday afternoon. Randolph took game one 3-0, before clawing back and earning game two 9-8 in nine innings.

                In the opening contest, Randolph junior pitcher Logan Carter (Richmond, Va./Midlothian) was the story, as she tossed her 13^th complete game of the year, shutting out the Quakers 3-0. Carter chalked up her third shutout of the season, as she struck out eight and allowed only three hits. She is now second in the league in strikeouts with 95 on the year.

                Randolph (25-13/8-10 ODAC) took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning, as Jess Sanabria (Burgaw, N.C./Pender) scored Brittany Willingham (Glen Burnie, Md./Glen Burnie) with a sacrifice fly. The WildCats doubled their lead in the fifth, as Sanabria plated Ashley Gardner (Ashburn, Va./Stone Bridge) with a RBI two-bagger. Willingham would score Jessica Nowak (Stafford, Va./North Stafford) in the sixth with a sac fly to give the 'Cats some insurance.

                First-year centerfielder Erin Wehrhan (Virginia Beach, Va./Princess Anne) had two hits in three at-bats, while Willingham walked twice and scored a run. Guilford pitcher Maggie Shaffer threw well despite getting the loss, allowing three earned runs and striking out six. Randolph upped its record to 13-0 when leading after the first inning this year.

                In the second contest, Randolph had to claw back as the Quakers (18-16/4-12 ODAC) tallied four times in the opening frame, three coming on a homer from Ashley Boteler. The WildCats would pull to within one in the bottom of the third, highlighted by the first of two two-run, two out hits by Wehrhan. The Quakers would respond the next half inning, scoring two runs to take a 6-3 lead.

                After GC upped its lead back up to four in the top of the fifth, Randolph would begin to make its move. Wehrhan drove in a run with a double in the sixth, and was scored the next batter by Willingham. Junior Brittney Via (Charlottesville, Va./Monticello) was stellar in relief, holding the Quakers scoreless over the sixth and seventh innings.

                Via's effort made it possible for the WildCats to knot the game at seven in the bottom of the seventh, as Wehrhan chalked up her second two-out, two-run double of the game to pull the game even. The two runs batted in were her fifth and sixth of the season, with five coming in this one game alone.

                Both teams went scoreless in the first extra inning, but GC scored in the top of the ninth to make the score 9-7. Starting with a runner on second to start the bottom of the ninth, Randolph tied the game with one out after a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt allowed Sanabria to score. Ashton Ewers (Gladys, Va./William Campbell), now on second base, advanced to third base on a wild pitch to set the table for Nowak. The first-year drilled a 1-0 fastball to left field to score Ewers and give the 'Cats the win.

                It was a career game for Wehrhan, who was three-for-three with five RBI and a run scored. First-year Hannah Cook (Yorktown, Va./Grafton) had two hits and two runs scored, while Willingham added two hits. Ewers scored three runs for Randolph, and Sanabria crossed the plate twice. Carter came on to get the win in game two as well, allowing only one hit over the final two innings.

                With the wins, Randolph clinched a spot in the ODAC Tournament, set to start next Friday in Salem, Virginia at the Moyer Softball Complex. Randolph will finish its season Sunday afternoon at Emory & Henry College (11-23/3-13 ODAC) at 2 p.m. in league action.

--RANDOLPH--