Williamsburg, KY- In a two game Mid-South Conference series featuring the Cumberland Phoenix and the Cumberlands Patriots each team took a game. Game one belonged to the Phoenix 8-7 despite a late rally by the Patriots, but then game two was all UC who won 6-1 with five of their runs coming from the long ball. The win gives UC their 30^th of the season, marking just the fifth time it has happened in program history.

Four UC players hit above .500 in the pair of games, led by the two Georgetown, KY natives Emily Jasper (.600) and Meryn Livingston (.571). Five of the teams 12 RBIs came off the bat of Livingston who provided three RBIs in each game. Livingston recorded two home runs in game two, for her first multi-home run game of her career.

Maddie Sickau also went yard, her 11^th of the season, a team best and hit .400 on the day. Hailey Wood stole five bases in game one marking a new single game record in the fastpitch era. On the day she had three hits and scored three times for the Patriots for a .500 average.

Talli Burgess became just the third pitcher in the past five years to record 10 wins in a season, where she improves to 10-2 on the year. In today's game she struck out five batters, surrendering just one run off three hits in six innings of work. Burgess now leads the team in strikeouts with 66 on the year.

GAME ONE: COMEBACK FALLS SHORT FOR UC, 8-7
The Phoenix got on the board first, plating three runs off four hits and three errors from the Patriots in the top of inning #1. Kaiti White did strikeout the side to help limit the damage. Cumberlands answered in the top of the first inning, marking six consecutive games they scored in their first frame of the contest. With two outs on the board, Sickau hit a single to shallow right field and then was brought home from double hit by Emily Bryant to deep left-center field making the score 3-1.

CU did not slow down their offense getting three more runs off five hits and an error. They would also plate a run in the top of the third to extend their lead to 7-1. But once again UC would answer back, this time with three runs of their own. Jasper slapped an infield single and advanced to second on an error. Wood shot a single to shallow right field to bring Jasper around for the score. The rally continued with Cheesemans' RBI double to deep left-center field making the score 7-3. Livingston hit the ball in play, allowing Cheeseman to score for a 7-4 ballgame.

Kaci Goedde entered the circle in the second inning and only surrendered two earned runs across 4.2 innings. Her best innings came in the fourth and fifth when the Phoenix were retired in order, including an inning ending strikeout in the fourth.

The Phoenix added what would become a crucial insurance run in the top of the seventh inning to make the score 8-4. Then in the bottom of the seventh, Wood got a single and stole second to get into scoring position. Cheeseman was walked and Wood took advantage of the situation, stealing third, her fifth swipe of the game. Sickau hit a sacrifice fly to score Wood from third. A double from Bryant pushed Cheeseman to third. Livingston took advantage of the situation hitting a single into the center to pick up a pair of RBIs making the score 8-7. Despite Madison Huber getting hit by a pitch to put the winning run on first, UC could not score another run, losing 8-7.

GAME TWO: TRIO OF HOMERS GIVES UC THE WIN, 6-1
A leadoff walk followed by a double, resulted in a run for the Phoenix in the first inning. The Patriots would tie the game back up in the second frame. A lead off single from Livingston and a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt from Huber put a runner in scoring position. Livingston advanced to third and then scored off an error later in the inning, tying the game at one.

Burgess shutdown the Phoenix offense the rest of the game, giving up just two more hits in the game. The fifth was the best inning for Burgess where she recorded two strikeouts, both of which looking.

The bottom of the fourth inning, swinging at the first pitch she saw, Livingston hit a moon shot over the left field fence to give UC the 2-1 lead.

The very next inning, Wood got aboard from a walk and Sickau made sure she scored sending a no doubt home run over the left field fence to make the score 4-1. Bryant got on from an error and Livingston, this time sent a 3-2 count pitch to center field for the second two-run home run of the inning and her second home run in consecutive innings. The two home runs doubled Livingston's total to four on the season and gave UC the 6-1 lead.

Lindsey Shope came into relief in the seventh inning where she struckout a batter and stranded a run to help improve the Patriots' MSC record to 11-7 and made their overall record 30-12.

Cumberlands will stay at the UC Softball Complex for a four-game series against Thomas More. The MSC battle is slated to begin at 2 PM on Saturday, April 10 for the first set of doubleheader action. Live stats can be found here and live video on the UCSN can be found here.

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