NORTH CAROLINA – The Valkyries softball team had four games in North Carolina this weekend, two against Chowan and two against Barton. Converse lost to Chowan 8-0 in both games and 8-7 and 9-1 against Barton.
Converse at Chowan
Game 1: Chowan 8-0 Converse
Game 2: Chowan 8-0 Converse
Records: Converse (1-27, 0-4 Conference Carolinas), Chowan (7-18, 2-4 Conference Carolinas)
Game 1 Notes:
- Ryan Finazzo had the single hit for Converse during her two at-bats in game one.
- Serrah Ballard pitched four innings with one strikeout and also had two appearances at the plate.
Game 2 Notes:
- Brooke Scruggs got the solo hit for the Valkyries in their 8-0 loss. She had two at-bats along with her one hit. Brooklyn McElrath led in at-bats with three.
- Belle Roper pitched four innings during the game with two at-bats.
Converse at Barton
Game 1: Barton 8-7 Converse
Game 2: Barton 9-1 Converse
Records: Converse (1-29, 0-6 Conference Carolinas), Barton (20-2, 7-0 Conference Carolinas)
Game 1 Notes:
- Top 4 – Converse entered the inning down 4-0, looking to put some runs on the board. Kayla Rocha got on base after getting hit by a pitch and then was able to steal second base. Ballard followed by singling to third base which allowed Rocha to advance. Emily Ingle pinch hit for Madeline Modica and hit a single to short stop which sent Rocha home to put the Valkyries on the board.
- Top 5 – The Bulldogs scored two runs in the bottom of the fourth to make it a 6-1 game, however, this had no affect on the Valkyries as they were able to score four runs. It started out by Scruggs getting on base after getting hit by a pitch. McElrath then doubled to left field which advanced Scruggs to third. Grace McKinney walked, and then Maggie Griffis singled down the left field line to advance McKinney to second and sent Scruggs and McElrath home. Rocha grounded out to third on a sacrifice bunt to push Griffis to second base and McKinney to third base. Ballard followed by singling to right field which allowed McKinney to score the third run of the inning for Converse. Ingle finished out the inning by hitting a single to center field which sent Griffis home to make it a 6-5 ballgame, still in Barton's favor.
- Top 6 – Scruggs singled up the middle, and McElrath followed by being walked. McKinney was able to reach first off an error by the first baseman which allowed for Scruggs to make it to third and McElrath to make it to second. Griffis reached first on a fielder's choice which resulted in McElrath being thrown out at third, however, it allowed Scruggs to earn another run for Converse. Rocha got hit by another pitch which moved Griffis to second and McKinney to third. Ballard also got hit by a pitch which sent McKinney home to score the Valkyries seventh run of the game, giving them the lead.
- Bottom 7 – To finish out the game, the Bulldogs scored two runs to win game one by a score of 8-7.
- Ballard pitched six innings with one strikeout.
Game 2 Notes:
- Top 3 – The Bulldogs would already be up 5-0 on the Valkyries when the third inning rolled around. Aaliyah Newman reached first on a fielding error by the third baseman. Finazzo followed by hitting a double to right field which allowed for Newman to score the only run for Converse of game two.
- Bottom 4/5 – Barton scored one run in the bottom of the fourth and three runs in the bottom of the fifth to take game two 9-1.
- Roper pitched 4.2 innings with one strikeout.
Next Up:
The Valkyries return home on Tuesday afternoon for a doubleheader series against Lees-McRae.
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