Richard Bland Sweeps Wake Technical (N.C.) 19-2 (5), 17-0 (5)

SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. – Sophomore Katelyn King/Chesterfield had six hits and four RBIs, and freshman Taylor Daniel/Alberta had five hits and five RBIs, to lead Richard Bland College to a Region 10 softball doubleheader sweep past Wake Technical (N.C.) Community College on Friday at the RBC Softball Field.  Sophomore Shannon Buffington/Virginia Beach gained the pitching victory in the 19-2 opener for the host Statesmen (22-19, 16-8), while freshman Brooklynn Bilyard/Culpeper earned the pitching triumph in the 17-0 nightcap against the visiting Eagles (3-23, 1-21) in the regular season finale. 

In the first game, shortened to five innings via the run rule, Richard Bland scored 19 runs on 19 hits, scoring 14 runs in the second inning and five runs in the third inning.  In the second, sophomore August Ringer/Yale (2-2, 3 RBI) had a two-run single, Daniel (2-5, RBI) had an RBI single, sophomore Tabby Dabney/Mechanicsville (2-5, 4 RBIs) had a two-run double, freshman Kay'Lee Justice/Suffolk (3-3, 2 RBIs) had an RBI single, freshman Ashley Fritz/North Chesterfield (2-4, 4 RBIs) had a two-run triple, sophomore Morgan Whitley/Franklin (2-3, RBI) had an RBI single, Ringer added an RBI double, Dabney added another two-run double, Justice added an RBI double, and King (4-4, 2 RBIs) had an RBI single.

In the third, Bilyard (1-1, RBI) had a sacrifice fly RBI, King had an RBI single and Fritz had a two-run single.  The Statesmen added an unearned run, as well, courtesy of an error.

King had four hits and Justice had three hits, while Dabney, Daniel, Fritz, Ringer and Whitley each collected two hits in game one for Richard Bland.

Buffington (7-9) started in the circle and tossed the first 4.0 innings, scattering five hits and two runs, both earned, with two strikeouts and no walks.  Bilyard tossed the final 1.0 scoreless inning, yielding two hits with three strikeouts and no walks.

In the second game, also shortened to five innings via the run rule, Richard Bland scored 17 runs on 15 hits, scoring nine runs in the first inning, four runs in the second and four runs in the fourth inning.  In the first, King (2-3, 2 RBIs) had an RBI single, Daniel (3-5, 4 RBIs) had a two-run single and Bilyard (2-5, 2 RBIs) had an RBI single.  The Statesmen added four unearned runs via a pair of errors, along with another run courtesy of a wild pitch.

In the second, freshman Kara Morris/Kents Store (3-3, 2 RBIs) had an RBI double, Daniel added an RBI ground ball, Bilyard added an RBI single and Dabney (1-2, RBI) contributed an RBI single.  In the fourth, King added an RBI double, Morris added an RBI single and Daniel added another RBI single.  The Statesmen scored another unearned run from an error, as well.

Daniel and Morris each had three hits, while Bilyard and King each collected two hits in game two for Richard Bland.

Bilyard (7-2) started in the circle and tossed the complete-game 5.0 inning shutout, scattering three hits with six strikeouts and no walks. 

Richard Bland recognized its sophomores during a special pregame ceremony, including Shannon Buffington, Katelyn Cobb/Newsoms, Tabby Dabney, Sierra Johnson/Capron, Katelyn King, August Ringer and Morgan Whitley.

Richard Bland will travel to play in the Region 10 Tournament scheduled for May 5-6 at Springwood Park in Burlington, North Carolina.