Richard Bland Falls At Pitt (N.C.) 2-1 | Sophomore Day On Friday

WINTERVILLE, N.C. -- Sophomores Tabby Dabney/Mechanicsville and Katelyn Cobb/Newsoms, along with freshman Brooklynn Bilyard/Culpeper, combined in the circle to yield just four hits, but Richard Bland College dropped a 2-1 Region 10 softball road game at Pitt (N.C.) Community College on Thursday in Winterville, North Carolina.  The visiting Statesmen (20-19, 14-8) had their recent eight-game winning streak stopped by the host Bulldogs (21-11, 18-6).  Richard Bland will welcome Wake Technical (N.C.) Community College for a Region 10 doubleheader and the regular-season finale on Friday, April 28 at 3 p.m. during Sophomore Day at the RBC Softball Field.

Playing at Pitt in a rescheduled game from April 5, Richard Bland scored its lone run in the top of the fifth inning.  Sophomore Morgan Whitley/Franklin (1-3) singled with one out and crossed the plate with two outs when classmate Taylor Daniel/Alberta (1-3) reached on an error.  Unfortunately, the Statesmen could not manage any more runs, while the Bulldogs plated a run in both the first and third innings for the narrow one-run margin. 

Bilyard (1-3), Daniel and Whitley, along with freshmen Kay'Lee Justice/Suffolk (1-3) and Kennedy Presson/Wakefield (1-3), each collected a hit in the game for Richard Bland.

Dabney started in the circle and tossed the first 2.0 innings, scattering two hits and one run, earned, with one strikeout and no walks.  Cobb (3-2) took the pitching decision in relief with 1.0 inning, allowing two hits and one run, unearned, with no strikeouts and one walk.  Bilyard tossed the final 3.0 scoreless innings, yielding no hits with three strikeouts and three walks.

Sophomore Class
Richard Bland will recognize its eight sophomores during a special pregame ceremony prior to the Wake Tech twinbill on Friday afternoon, including Shannon Buffington/Virginia Beach, Katelyn Cobb, Tabby Dabney, Tiffany Hedge/Fredericksburg, Sierra Johnson/Capron, Katelyn King/Chesterfield, August Ringer/Yale and Morgan Whitley.

Buffington has made 53 career appearances with a 20-19 record, 3.37 ERA, 84 strikeouts and 226.1 innings. 

Cobb has made 19 appearances with a 3-9 record, 5.03 ERA, 19 strikeouts and 47.1 innings. 

Dabney has played in 61 career games with a .411 batting average, nine home runs, 15 doubles, 50 runs and 57 RBIs, while in the circle, she has made 29 appearances with a 9-8 record, 4.39 ERA, 61 strikeouts and 111.2 innings. 

Johnson has played in 21 games with a .323 batting average, one home run, two doubles, six runs and nine RBIs. 

King has played in 55 games with a .324 batting average, three home runs, seven doubles, 37 runs and 29 RBIs. 

Ringer has played in 69 games with a .313 batting average, three triples, 39 runs and 14 RBIs. 

Whitley has played in 67 games with a .305 batting average, eight doubles, 31 runs and 24 RBIs. 

Hedge played in six games this season before being diagnosed with advanced Hodgkin's Lymphoma in February.  A gofundme page, linked below, has been established and all money raised will go toward helping Tiff pay for her medical bills.
#TiffanyStrong