Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina softball opened a busy week of home action on Tuesday using late-game heroics to walk off Gardner-Webb 4-3 in game one of the nonconference doubleheader before jumping out to an early lead but needing more late-game offense to complete the sweep 8-6 at the Catamount Softball Complex.
Junior Taylor Waitley was 3-for-4 over the doubleheader sweep with a double and three RBIs, also converting on a pair of sacrifices. Freshman Courtney Marks posted a 5-for-7 effort at the plate with a double and a pair of steals. Sophomore Sydney Dirks went 3-for-5 with a pair of runs scored and a stolen base.
Junior Rylee Butler and sophomore Maya McPherson had a pair of hits while senior Natalie Henry and sophomores Lily Bell and Becka Wonsick all got in the hit column on Tuesday.
Game One – Western Carolina 4, Gardner-Webb 3
Trailing 3-2 going to the home half of the seventh inning, WCU used late-game heroics from the top of the order to rally in scoring the walk-off, come-from-behind 4-3 victory in Tuesday's doubleheader opener.
With Lily Bell aboard with a fielder's choice, WCU's one-out rally continued with a walk to Courtney Marks ahead of a game-tying, RBI single to left field that knotted the game at three. Maya McPherson single to load the bases before Mattie Mentel worked a 2-2 count with consecutive pitches out of the strike zone to force home Marks for the game-winning, walk-off base on balls.
Marks (2-for-3), Butler (2-for-4), and Sydney Dirks (2-for-3) paced the Catamount offense with two-hit games, tallying six of WCU's nine hits in the victory. WCU's four runs were plated by four different players in the winning effort.
After a scoreless first inning, Gardner-Webb struck first with a lead-off home run and a two-run double that handed the Runnin' Bulldogs a 3-0 lead. WCU responded, though, as Dirks led off the second with a single before ending up on third base after a wild pitch and stolen base. Taylor Waitley then put WCU on the board with a sacrifice fly before an infield single by Lily Bell cut it to a 3-2 game after two complete.
Over the next three innings, both teams sent one over the minimum to the dish keeping the score within a run.
Gardner-Webb threatened with a two-out double in the sixth inning but it was quickly erased with an infield pop-up. In the home half, WCU put two aboard with two out on a Dirks single up the middle and a five-pitch walk to Natalie Henry. However, a ground out to first ended the threat with the Catamounts still down a run.
GWU connected on a two-out single in the top of the seventh but could not string anything together against Western Carolina starter Amanda Fulton who induced a third ground ball out in the inning to keep the home squad within one run, setting up the bottom of the seventh heroics.
Fulton (7-1) dialed up her sixth straight complete game on Tuesday, scattering seven hits and allowing just three runs with a pair of strikeouts.
Addie Stem (0-1) suffered the loss for Gardner-Webb as she also went the distance, surrendering nine hits and four runs with four walks and a strikeout.
Game Two – Western Carolina 8, Gardner-Webb 6
Riding the momentum of game one's walk-off win, Western Carolina raced out to a 5-0 lead over the first two innings of game two. However, Gardner-Webb erased the deficit with a five-spot in the top of the fourth inning. The Catamounts responded with three runs between the fourth and fifth innings and held on in the seventh to complete the doubleheader sweep with an 8-6 win.
Courtney Marks (3-for-4) collected three of WCU's nine hits with Taylor Waitley (2-for-2) plating two with a pair of hits as both players doubled in the winning effort, Marks collecting her second two-base hit of the year. Lily Bell and Natalie Henry both scored twice in the nightcap.
With Bell and Marks aboard with a walk and a double, Rylee Butler was plunked to load the bases with nobody out. Mattie Mentel lifted a sacrifice fly to right to drive Bell home for the first run to put WCU on the board. A double steal by Butler and Marks with a GWU throwing error netted WCU its second run for a 2-0 lead after the first inning.
The Catamounts stretched their lead in the second with consecutive singles putting two aboard with nobody out. An errant throw by GWU on a sacrifice bunt attempt by Waitley allowed both Becca Wonsick and Henry to score to push the margin to four. Marks then capped the scoring with an RBI single to give the hosts a 5-0 lead.
After a scoreless third with both teams working around one base runner, Gardner-Webb climbed back into the game in the top of the fourth inning. Two singles, both followed by two-run home runs, clawed the Runnin' Bulldogs back to within a run at 5-4. A trio of singles – two coming on bunts – loaded the bases before Jailyn Tineo lifted a sacrifice fly to center to knot the midweek game before starter Tessa Juett got out of the frame with a strikeout and fly ball.
WCU answered, though, in the home half of the fourth. With two on and two gone, Maya McPherson lined a single through the left side to net her team-high 31st RBI, scoring Bell and putting the Catamounts back in front 6-5.
The Catamounts added insurance in the fifth as Dirks and Henry opened the frame with a pair of walks before a Wonsick sacrifice moved the runners into scoring position. Waitley lined a double to the right-center gap to score two and pushed the Catamounts in front by three, 8-5.
Gardner-Webb got a one-out baserunner to second base before AG Batson came on in relief and recorded back-to-back groundouts to end the sixth and send Tuesday's finale to the seventh after a scoreless home half.
Gardner-Webb opened the final frame with a single before Batson recorded consecutive outs on a strikeout and a lineout to short. However, a WCU throwing error on the second out allowed the runner to advance into scoring position. An infield single compounded with a WCU throwing miscue pushed a run across for an 8-6 score and brought the tying run to the plate. Batson, though, finished things off with a strikeout looking to record the save and give WCU its fifth doubleheader sweep of the season.
Tessa Juett (5-6) earned the victory, going 5.1 innings, scattering 10 hits with five runs while striking out four. Batson earned her first save in a rare relief appearance as she tossed the final 1.2 innings, only allowing an unearned run with a pair of strikeouts to secure the doubleheader sweep.
Batson's save marks the first by a Catamount since March 21, 2023, when Juett the final 3.1 innings in a win over Gardner-Webb in Boiling Springs.
Anna Hornbaker (4-2) started for the Runnin' Bulldogs, going 4.0 innings as she allowed eight hits and eight runs, four earned, and a strikeout. Ali Stidham pitched the final 2.0 innings as she only allowed one hit in a scoreless relief appearance.
Western Carolina (15-12) is back in action on Wednesday afternoon when the Catamounts host a nonconference doubleheader against Tulsa. Game one against the Golden Hurricane is slated for a 2 p.m. start. Both games will be broadcast through the Catamount Sports Network with live streaming audio as well as live stats available online at CatamountSports.com.
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