First Posted: 5/2/2014
LUMBERTON — The Lumberton and Purnell Swett softball teams traded hits on Thursday, but an early lead was enough to keep the Pirates’ playoff hopes alive in a 9-8 win.
“The first four innings we owned them and the last three they owned us,” said Lumberton coach Mackie Register. “We had enough to hang on basically.”
Both teams need a win tonight to make the playoffs. The Rams (7-12, 4-5) and Pirates (7-12, 4-5) are both tied with Scotland for third place in the SEC standings. Richmond and Pinecrest have the top two spots clinched.
Lumberton had a five-run second inning and led 8-1 after the fourth. The Rams had five runs in the fifth, including a three-run home run by Kyla Chavis. Mikala Lowry had a chance to tie the game in her final at bat and hit a liner to left field that was bobbled but eventually caught.
Danielle Smith got the win for Lumberton.
The Pirates play at Scotland tonight in the regular-season finale and the Rams will be at Hoke.
In another area softball game, Fairmont beat Red Springs 8-5. The Golden Tornadoes batted around in the second inning to go ahead and never relinquished the lead.
UNCP golfer makes NCAA championship
INDIANAPOLIS — The University of North Carolina at Pembroke freshman Ashlii Thompson was among 36 teams and 16 individuals selected to participate in the 2014 NCAA Division II Women’s Golf Championships.
It is the fourth-straight year that the UNCP womens golf team will be represented in the NCAA postseason.
Thompson had a team-best 77.3 stroke average across 10 events and 18 rounds of golf this season. The first team all-PBC and PBC Golfer of the Week selection has eight top-20 finishes already this season, including medalist honors at the Myrtle Beach Intercollegiate in October. She also grabbed all-tournament team honors at the 2014 PBC Championships after finishing the event in a tie for first.
UNCP softball wins sportsmanship award
AUGUSTA, Ga. – Following a season with the most Peach Belt Conference victories since the 2011 season and the first year under head coach Brittany Bennett, the UNC Pembroke softball team was awarded the 2014 PBC Team Sportsmanship Award for the softball season.
This award marks the second time in the last four years that the squad has been given the PBC Sportsmanship Award.
“A mentor of mine told me to remember that the program doesn’t belong to you, it belongs to the university and it’s your job to uphold high standards for yourself as well as your team,” Bennett said. “I knew when I interviewed, Mr. Christy was going to hold me accountable for what our program stands for and I was ready for the challenge. Sportsmanship is a value of mine as a mentor so I really coach it up. As we worked on our foundation all fall, our players really bought in to winning on the field and representing UNC Pembroke well.”
This season, the Lady Braves (22-24, 8-14 PBC) held a five-game winning streak towards the end of the season, back-to-back defeats of then-No.2 Kutztown in February, four series sweeps, three shutouts, six run-rule victories and one win in extra innings against opponents. Bennett captured wins in her first contest of her head coaching career in the regular season and conference portion of her schedule.
