GREENSBORO, N.C. - The Guilford College softball team (5-5) experienced wins all day as they battled against the Monarchs of Methodist University (4-8) at Haworth Field on Sunday afternoon. It is the first time this season where GC has won both games of the presented doubleheader. The Quakers fought through a late-game surge by Methodist and delivered a dramatic walk-off victory in extra innings, winning 9-8 in game one while game two was low-scoring yet found a way to edge MU in a pitching duel, 2-1.
 
Game One:

Dillon Northen (Kernersville, N.C.) (2-2) picked up the win in relief, pitching 1.1 innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits. Abbey Whelan (Gaithersburg, Md.) provided a strong start, going 6.2 innings with four strikeouts, while Kiersten Margoupis (2-4) took the loss despite 7.0 innings pitched and seven strikeouts.

The Quakers' offense was smothering to say the least, collecting 17 hits, including four from Corryn McCutchen (Carthage, N.C.) (4-for-5, 4 RBIs, double), who played a pivotal role in the final inning. Olivia Shelton (Stokesdale, N.C.) (3-for-4, 1 RBI, double, stolen base) and Cassie Turner (Burlington, N.C.) (3-for-4, double, 2 runs) also contributed key hits in clutch moments.

Methodist's offense was led by Lovick (2-for-5, 2 runs, RBI) and Blanchard (2-for-5, RBI double), while Alyssa Rivas collected two hits and an RBI.

After jumping out to a 6-3 lead in the second inning, GC held on as MU chipped away. The Monarchs tied the game in the seventh with a three-run rally, highlighted by Riley Blanchard's RBI double and Amanda Blackburn's game-tying RBI single. Methodist then took an 8-6 lead in the eighth behind Hannah Lovick's RBI single.

Down to their final at-bats, the Quakers responded in the bottom of the eighth. Turner led off with a double, followed by a Shelton RBI double to cut the deficit to one. McCutchen then delivered an RBI single to tie the game, stole second, and scored the winning run on Brooke Goyings' (Lake Villa, Ill.) walk-off RBI single.
 
Game Two:

Shiloh Gray (Lexington, N.C.) (1-2) was outstanding in the circle, allowing just one earned run on seven hits while striking out two in a seven-inning complete game. She kept Methodist's offense in check, forcing key groundouts and flyouts to strand runners in scoring position. Emma Neeley (2-4) took the loss for Methodist despite a solid outing, allowing just two earned runs on seven hits with two strikeouts in six innings pitched.

GC had a breakthrough in the fourth inning when Avery Lowe (Greensboro, N.C.) (3-for-3, RBI) delivered a clutch RBI single to bring home Goyings (1-for-2, BB, stolen base) for the game's first run. Guilford added an insurance run in the fifth, as Corryn McCutchen's RBI groundout plated Alyssa Daniel (Spring Lake, N.C.), who had entered as a pinch-runner.

Methodist's lone run came in the sixth inning, when Riley Blanchard (1-for-2, HR, RBI) launched a solo home run to right field, cutting the deficit to 2-1. Despite a late push, Gray and the Guilford defense held strong, stranding the tying run on base in the seventh. Shelton (2-for-3, stolen base) and Turner (1-for-2) added key hits for the Quakers, while Lovick (2-for-4, stolen base) led the Monarchs with a multi-hit performance.

Up next for the Quakers is another non-conference matchup at Haworth Field against Elmira College on Thursday, March 6th. First pitch is slated for 11 AM for game one whereas game two is aimed for 1 PM.

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