ASHLAND, Va. – Junior Candace Whittemore (Montpelier, Va./Patrick Henry) tossed a one-hit shutout in the opener, while senior Harley Jones (Brodnax, Va./Brunswick) drove in the 100th run of her career in the nightcap, as the fourth-ranked Randolph-Macon softball team swept a doubleheader from Mary Washington Wednesday afternoon to extend its win streak to 21.
The Yellow Jackets (21-1) took Game 1 by a score of 10-0 in five innings, and completed the sweep with a 4-1 victory in Game 2 over the Eagles (11-13).
Whittemore (10-1) did not walk a batter and struck out seven in five innings. She faced one over the minimum. Whittemore retired the Eagles in order in each of the first three innings before a leadoff single in the fourth gave UMW its only base runner in Game 1.
R-MC started its scoring in the first. Junior Kerstin Roth (Yorktown, Va./Grafton) drew a leadoff walk, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on a groundout by junior Savannah Wood (Tappahannock, Va./Essex) to give the Yellow Jackets a 1-0 lead. Sophomore Sami Davidson (Stafford, Va./Brooke Point) also walked and came home on a double by freshman Kaitlyn Deeter (Roanoke, Va./Lord Botetourt) to make it 2-0.
The Yellow Jackets would erupt for six in the second. Roth and Wood delivered RBI singles and Deeter added a two-run double as the lead grew to 8-0.
R-MC added two in the fourth as Jones walked and scored on an error, while Deeter reached on an error and came home on a groundout by freshman Lauren Richardson (Stafford, Va./North Stafford) as the Yellow Jackets went up 10-0.
Deeter went 2 for 3 with a pair of doubles, two runs and two RBI. Roth and Davidson both scored twice.
Freshman Madie Rhoads (Portsmouth, Va./Nansemond River) was the starting pitcher in Game 2 for R-MC. She worked six innings and allowed two hits and three walks while striking out 10.
The Yellow Jackets got the offense going in the third. Wood had a one-out single, stole second and came home on a double by Jones. It was the 100th RBI for Jones in her four-year career to give R-MC a 1-0 advantage. Jones scored when Deeter struck out and reached on a passed ball as the lead grew to 2-0.
Deeter and Jones hit back-to-back homers to left in the fifth, giving the home team a 4-0 cushion. It was the third dinger of the season for Davidson and the sixth for Jones.
Jones went 3 for 3 with two runs and two RBI. She was a triple short of the cycle. Wood, Davidson and sophomore Maddie Stone (Glen Allen, Va./Glen Allen) each had two hits.
Randolph-Macon returns to ODAC action on Saturday, March 31, for a 1 p.m. home doubleheader with Lynchburg.