LUMBERTON — One night after a big, confidence-boosting win over Jack Britt, the Lumberton softball team hoped for further validation for that victory as they hosted West Bladen in nonconference play Tuesday.

Two freshmen provided it.

Halona Sampson pitched a one-hitter and Alona Hanna had five RBIs including a grand slam in a five-inning 10-0 Pirates win.

“It carried over from last night,” Lumberton coach Mackie Register said. “(Sampson) was on last night too, and she dialed it in after we got that lead in last night’s game, which was a big win for us. But tonight, that’s the best we’ve seen her pitch. She was hitting spots in, out, up. It was like playing a video game; wherever we called it, she was hitting her spots.”

Sampson struck out seven of the 16 batters she faced, with an infield single by Mackenzie Singletary accounting for the only West Bladen (7-2) baserunner. Singletary was sacrificed to second base in that inning, but advanced no further after a fly out and a strikeout.

“I think it was hitting my spots mostly,” Sampson said. “That helps out a lot with pitching, making sure you’re hitting those spots and getting them in the right spots, and they’re not hitting them out, getting base hits.”

Lumberton (6-4) scored four runs in the first on Hanna’s grand slam. August Smith and Nakiyah Hunt had reached on walks in the inning and Syniah Lancaster singled before the home run plated all three.

“I was in shock, I didn’t even believe it,” Hanna said. “I saw how far I hit it, but it was crazy. I’ve been waiting for that. It definitely is good as a freshman to do that right there, and let people know I can hit and that I can play varsity.”

“She hit one out in practice the other day, so she’s been pumped up,” Register said. “She ain’t big as a minute, but she put everything into that thing, she smoked that ball.”

The Pirates added four more runs in the fourth, starting with a two-RBI single by Lancaster to score Alyssa Stone and Aniya Merritt. Nakiyah Hunt’s RBI single scored August Smith and a sacrifice fly by Hanna plated Lancaster for an 8-0 Pirates lead.

Stone and Mallori Allen scored on RBI groundouts by Smith and Lancaster in the fifth, giving the Pirates a 10-0 lead to end the game.

“I feel like, when we’re loud and we’re supporting each other, everybody’s having a good time, we’re confident at the plate, everybody’s loose, we’re not nervous about anything and we starting hitting good,” Hanna said. “Somebody gets it going and then we just start getting runs in.”

Stone and Lancaster had two hits for Lumberton; both scored two runs, as did Smith. Lancaster had three RBIs in addition to Hanna’s five.

The Pirates began their second time through the Sandhills Athletic Conference schedule last week, and are 4-4 in league play with four games remaining. Monday’s win over Jack Britt, who entered that game tied for the second in the SAC, showed the Pirates can play with anyone in the league.

“I think it was a big win yesterday; it made us feel better as a team and made our confidence go up a lot, because we lost to them last time,” Sampson said. “So it just made us feel better about winning this game and really confident.”

The Pirates finish with three out of four on the road, and after facing Pinecrest Monday in Southern Pines will face the three of the top four teams in the conference in the final three games of the regular season; it’s a difficult stretch of games, but also a stretch that will give the Pirates an opportunity to make up ground in the SAC standings.

“We’re still not out of the playoff picture, and our girls know that,” Register said. “We’re getting better and better. Our practices are even getting better, because our freshman are growing up. We’re right about where I thought we’d be right now, and we’re a dangerous team right now.”