The Three Rivers College softball team continued its hot streak by relying on mid-inning surges to sweep a doubleheader against the Metropolitan Lady Wolves Friday at J.D. Rains Field.
The Lady Raiders snagged the opener 12-7, then won the second matchup 12-3. With Friday's two wins, Three Rivers improves to 26-7 on the season, recording their sixth straight win.
"I'm super proud of our group and how we competed. It could have been a little cleaner and a little better, but overall we played well," TRC coach Jeff Null said. "Offensively, our bat game showed up today, and our defense held strong as we started off a little slow. We made some mistakes, and Metropolitan made us pay, but I'm happy with how we performed."
In the first game, the Lady Raiders trailed 4-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning when Jessica Hulsey blasted a two-run homer, evening the score 4-4. A.J. Agers and Lexi Davis followed with back-to-back line drives to the outfield to grasp a 6-4 lead to close the inning.
The Lady Wolves didn't blink an eye as they fired back with a two-run homer in the top of the fifth inning to even the game again 6-6. The Lady Raiders concluded the first matchup with a series of hits at the bottom of the fifth, recording six runs in the inning.
In the second game, the Lady Raiders continued their hot run from the previous game to take an early 3-0 lead.
Similar to game one, the Lady Raiders began to rally past Metropolitan with a surge of hits. Agers kicked the hot streak off yet again with a double to center field to bring in a run, then a single from Davis to extend the lead 5-3 to close the fifth.
The Lady Raiders didn't let up off the gas as Trista Grobe smashed a single homer to center field. With that hit, Three Rivers went on an explosive inning to seal the fate of the Lady Wolves and continued to add to the score by capitalizing off the miscues of Metropolitan.
Ann-Marie Simpson had three hits in the opener, while Agers, Hulsey, Lexi Davis and Kyla Puckett each had two. Davis drove in four runs, while Simpson and Puckett each drove in a pair.
Grobe had three hits in the nightcap, while Davis and Simpson each had two. Grobe drove in five runs, while Agers drove in a pair.
Null said the biggest reason for the Lady Raiders' hot streak is their competitiveness.
"They hate to lose, and they hate to fail," Null said. "A few of them were mad because of striking out, but that's just their competitive nature. We're not always vocal because we can get in our heads sometimes, but it never takes away their drive to win. Having a never quit attitude is what keep teams away from those losing streaks. I believe this is a great trait because not all teams have it, but we do."
Three Rivers is back in action Saturday when the Lady Raiders host the Metropolitan Lady Wolves at noon.
D'Courtland Christian - Daily American Republic