MOUNT BERRY, Ga. -- The Covenant softball team fell twice at 10th-ranked Berry on Wednesday afternoon at Kay Williams Field as the host Vikings took game one, 6-1, before winning the finale, 8-0.
The games were originally scheduled for Lookout Mountain but moved to Mount Berry due to field conditions from recent rain.
Berry, ranked 10th in the preseason NFCA Top 25, moves to 4-1 on the year while Covenant is 0-8.
In the opener, Covenant trimmed a two-run deficit to one in the fifth inning but Berry answered with four runs in the bottom of the fifth to pull away for the 6-1 win.
Covenant put a runner in scoring position in four straight innings from the second to the fifth, but came through with a run in the fifth inning. Makenna Dance and Jordan Holman worked back-to-back one-out walks and moved to second and third with two outs. Cope Whitaker's grounder to short was mishandled and allowed Dance to score to make it a 2-1 game.
In the home half of the fifth, however, Berry responded with four runs on five hits as Hannan Rezeq's three-run homer highlighted the frame.
Covenant had four hits in the game as Holman, Aileen Hill, Tori Layfield, and Lauren Kierpa had one each. Layfield's hit was a double in the fourth inning.
Kierpa (0-5) went six innings in the circle and struck out four while throwing 118 pitches. Madison Hollis (3-0) got the win for Berry as she allowed one unearned run on four hits over five innings of work.
Shelby Daniel had two hits to lead Berry offensively.
In game two, a six-run fourth inning propelled Berry to the doubleheader sweep.
Meghan Hunt went 2-for-3 with a three-run homer while Daniel, Bayleigh Masterson, and Abbey Gamble all had two hits each. Meredith Holland (1-0) went the distance in the circle and did not allow a hit.
Jennifer Coates (0-2) made the start for Covenant and went a total of four innings.
UP NEXT
Covenant will host Centre for a doubleheader on Saturday. Game one is set for 1 p.m. on Lookout Mountain.
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