Central, S.C. - Southern Wesleyan defeated the Talladega Tornadoes 8-0 and followed with a 6-1 win over the Columbia International Rams on Friday.

The Warriors had seven hits in game one on Friday. Delaney Byers led the team with two hits and she was followed by Lydia Clanton, Megan New, Emma Collins, Taylor Le, and Emma Jo Wolfe each contributed one hit. Southern Wesleyan batted in eight RBIs as New and Collins led the team with two each. Four Warriors drew walks and five Warriors had stolen bases. Le had three stolen bases and Collins followed with two as they were front runners on the bases. Delanie Laudenbacher would pick up the win for the Warriors after four innings on the mound and four strikeouts. Collins would come in as relief to pitch the fifth inning and collect two strikeouts. 

In game two, the Warriors had five hits with senior Riley Herdliska leading the team with two. Byers, Wolfe, and Le also had hits against Columbia International. Byers had two of the five RBIs, while Sequoia Wingfield led the team with two of the five walks drawn. Wolfe had her first double of her collegiate career in the second game. On the bases, Micah Williams led the team with two stolen bases and Byers, Collins, Le, Wingfield, and Herdliska each had one. Ashton Martin started in the circle for Southern Wesleyan and struck out six through 4.1 innings. Collins closed out the last 2.2 innings with two strikeouts. 

Game Vitals

Final Game One: Southern Wesleyan 8, Talladega 0

Final Game Two: Southern Wesleyan 6, Columbia International 1

Records: Southern Wesleyan (6-4) Talladega (0-6) Columbia International (5-7)

Coach Adkins Says...

"It was good to come out and open with a couple wins to begin a home stand. We did several things well tonight. Probably what stood out to me the most is how well Riley Herdliska played on both sides of the ball. As a team, I would like for us to continue to strive to have good at bats more consistently."

How It Happened

Game One

Southern Wesleyan got on the board first as Delaney Byers would lead off the bottom of the first inning with a single to take first base. Byers would advance to second on a groundout from a teammate and would take third on a wild pitch by the Tornadoes. Megan New then grounded out, but picked up the RBI as Byers came in to score and put the Warriors ahead 1-0. 

Taylor Le walked in the bottom of the second and stole second to put herself in scoring position. Jaliyah Sanford took first after a fielder's choice play and Le moved over to third. Riley Herdliska would drive in Le and the Warriors would extend their lead. 

The Warriors put three runs on the board in the third inning. Lydia Clanton led-off with a single and New followed with a walk. Both advanced to the next base after a sacrifice bunt from Ashton Martin. Emma Collins would have her first triple of the season as she brought in Clanton and New. Le would also put down a sacrifice bunt and Collins would come in to score and put the Warriors on top 5-0. 

Byers singled to left field at the start of the bottom of the fourth and would steal second and advance to third on a sacrifice fly from Clanton. New followed with a single that would allow Byers to come in and score. 

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Le out-ran the infield hit and went on to steal second and third with aggressive base running. Emma Jo Wolfe then singled and Le would score. Sequoia Wingfield came in to pinch hit and would take base on an error from the second baseman. Wolfe would score on the error and the Warriors would take an 8-0 lead as the run-rule advantage would be in favor of SWU and they would claim the win. 

Game Two

The Warriors added a run in the bottom of the first as Byers would lead off with a single, a stolen second base and brought home by Wolfe's first collegiate double. Le walked in her first at bat of the second game on Friday and Wingfield was also able to draw a walk right behind her. Martin's sacrifice bunt advanced both runners and they would both score after an error by the Rams.

In the bottom of the third inning, New walked and Micah Williams came into pinch run for her. Williams stole second and third to put herself in scoring position. Collins would then walk and they both advanced on Le's groundball. Wingfield drew the third walk of the inning and stole second while Collins stole home. Herdliska's hard-hit single down the left field line would score Wingfield and put the Warriors ahead 6-0. 

Columbia International would hold the Warriors to zero runs in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings. The Rams would threaten with a late run in the top of the seventh, but the Warriors would close out the inning and take game two of the day in a 6-1 final. 

What's Next

Southern Wesleyan will conclude the Warrior Fastpitch Classic on February 22 as they take on the Talladega Tornadoes at 12 and 2 p.m. They will then travel to play the Tusculum Pioneers on February 26 at 2 and 4 p.m.