DENMARK, S.C. – The Stillman College softball team kept the race for first place in the HBCU Athletic Conference standings alive with a doubleheader sweep over the Voorhees University Tigers on Saturday afternoon, 12-2 and 14-5, both games in five innings.
Stillman now stands one win away and a loss by Dillard from first place heading into the HBCUAC Softball Championship Tournament.
Game 1 — Stillman 12, Voorhees 2
Stillman set the tone early and pulled away with a pair of big innings to secure the run-rule victory.
Addison Seale got the Tigers on the board in the first, scoring on
Avary Lumpkin's RBI single. Voorhees answered to tie the game, but Stillman regained the lead in the third as
Lily Stone came home on a sacrifice fly by Lumpkin and Seale followed by scoring on
Katelyn Lankford's RBI single to make it 3-1.
The Tigers broke the game open in the fourth.
Makynli Kidd scored on Seale's RBI single before Lumpkin delivered the biggest swing of the inning, a three-run double that plated Seale, Stone and
Addison Nuspl to extend the lead to 7-1.
Voorhees added a run in the fourth, but Stillman answered emphatically in the fifth.
JaLeah Orr singled in a run, Stone drove in another after being hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and Seale delivered a two-run single before stealing second and scoring to cap a five-run frame and push the lead to 12-2.
Stillman's baserunning created constant pressure, highlighted by four stolen bases from Seale along with additional steals from Stone as the Tigers consistently advanced into scoring position.
Lumpkin led the offense with five RBIs, while Seale added three RBIs and scored three times.
In the circle,
Karli Crocker earned the win, allowing two runs on five hits while striking out four over five innings.
Game 2 — Stillman 14, Voorhees 5
Stillman erupted early and never looked back, using a six-run first inning to seize control.
Lily Stone opened the scoring, coming home on
Addison Seale's RBI single before Seale scored on Lumpkin's RBI double.
Katelyn Lankford added an RBI single,
Makynli Kidd followed with another run-scoring hit, and Stone capped the inning with a two-run single as Stillman jumped out to a 6-0 lead.
Voorhees responded with four runs in the bottom of the first, but Stillman answered immediately in the third.
JaLeah Orr scored on
Addison Nuspl's RBI single, and Nuspl later came home on Stone's RBI double to extend the lead to 8-4.
Voorhees added a run in the third, but Stillman broke the game open again in the fourth. Orr reached and drove in a run on an error before Kidd delivered a two-run single. Lumpkin followed with a two-run single to stretch the lead to 13-5.
The Tigers added one more in the fifth as Kidd drove in another run to cap the scoring at 14-5.
Stillman finished with 17 hits, led by Kidd (three hits, four RBIs), Lumpkin (three hits, three RBIs), and Stone (three hits, three RBIs).
On the bases, Stillman continued to apply pressure with aggressive advancement and a stolen base from Nuspl.
Faith Byram earned the win, allowing five runs on eight hits over five innings while limiting further damage after the first inning.
Up Next:
Stillman wraps the regular season tomorrow against Voorhees, set for a 10 a.m. start.
