HobbsDailyReport.com
HICKORY – The Bears just keep on rolling in softball.
Getting key home runs from Mackenzie Cates and Erin Boone, Lenoir-Rhyne University extended its win streak to 16 games on Wednesday by beating visiting Newberry (S.C.) 11-0 and 6-3.
LRU, ranked seventh in NCAA Division II, improved to 42-5 overall and they finished 19-1 in the South Atlantic Conference (SAC) and as league champion.
Newberry dipped to 28-18, 9-9.
LRU is ranked No. 2 in the first NCAA Division II Southeast Regional rankings. The top eight in those rankings earn a postseason bid.
The Bears — 20-0 at home this season and a winner in 40 of their last 42 games — next play on Saturday in Bristol, Tenn., and they face King in a non-league doubleheader that begins at 2 p.m.
LRU 11, Newberry 0
Cates, a senior catcher, hit a three-run home run and finished with four RBIs as the Bears run-ruled the Wolves. The round-tripper was Cates’ team-leading 12th of the season.
Junior Brandi Parks won her 15th straight decision after notching her sixth shutout of the year. She pitched a four-hitter while Emily Marchbanks fell to 10-5 after taking a loss.
LRU 6, Newberry 3
Boone, a junior outfielder, broke a 3-all tie with a game-winning, three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Bears rallied from a 3-2 deficit to take the sweep.
Freshman outfielder Savannah Moorefield finished with four hits while senior second baseman Madison Poe added two run-scoring doubles for the Bears.
Junior Emily Kenley improved to 21-2 after notching a victory.
For Newberry, Haley Simonds hit a two-run home run while Alyssa Ball (Magnolia, Del.) fell to 11-10 after taking a loss.
- Reported by LRU Sports Information