MARYVILLE, Tenn. -- The Covenant softball team opened USA South play with a pair of losses on Saturday at Maryville. The Lady Scots fell 6-5 in the day's opener before falling 8-1 in the second game.
Covenant falls to 4-3-1 overall and 0-2 in league play, while Maryville goes to 5-5 and 2-0 inside the USA South.
GAME ONE: Maryville 6, Covenant 5
A four-run fifth inning gave Maryville a 6-3 lead and the hosts hung on in the late innings for a 6-5 victory in Saturday's first game.
Maryville scored twice in the first to take a 2-0 lead, but Covenant's Morgan Lane hit a three-run home run in the top of the fifth to give the Lady Scots a 3-2 lead. The home run was the first of the year for Lane.
The home Scots rallied with four runs in their half of the fifth to take the lead back at 6-3. Covenant tallied one in the sixth on Jami Johnson's sacrifice fly to make it 6-4. In the seventh, Covenant loaded the bases with two outs and Kat Andrews was hit by a pitch that brought in Shannon Schmitt to draw Covenant within 6-5, but the Lady Scots could not get the tying run in.
Schmitt went 2-for-3 with a run scored, while Lane did all her damage with the home run as she finished 1-for-4. Starting pitcher Tyler Epes (1-1) gets the loss after lasting 4.1 innings.
Maryville's Kayla Aloisi (4-2) receives the win and Morgan Corland gets credit for the save. Jessica McMahan and Alexus Murray had two hits apiece for the Scots.
GAME TWO: Maryville 8, Covenant 1
In the second game, Maryville scored four runs in the first and two more in the second to pull away for an 8-1 victory and a doubleheader sweep.
Covenant's lone run came in the second inning when Shade Epes produced a single and a Maryville error allowed Madison Quirk to score from second. The Lady Scots had six hits in the game as six different players recorded a hit.
McMahan was 3-for-3 with two runs and an RBI for Maryville, while Megan Mihaliak went 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Aloisi (5-2) also got the win in game two as she threw the final five innings.
Joni Johnson (2-1) gets the loss for Covenant.
UP NEXT
Covenant will travel to Decatur, Ga., on Wednesday to face Agnes Scott in a non-conference doubleheader. First pitch is slated for 4 p.m.
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