MORRISTOWN, TN – No. 7 Walters State honored their 10 sophomores on Saturday afternoon and sent them out in style with a doubleheader sweep over Roane State. The Lady Senators won 7-2 in game one and 10-2 in six innings in game two.

With the sweep, the Lady Senators improved to 35-7 overall and 25-5 in TCCAA play.

"It's always good to get two wins in the conference," Walters State coach Larry Sauceman said. "Jules Johnson continues to hit the ball well, and Brooklyn Copley was really good at the plate as well. Everyone hit well. We had good pitching and did a good job in the field behind them." 

Following the two games, Walters State held a ceremony for their sophomores. Those sophomores are Abby Davidson, Alex Blanton, Hayley Lawing, Haidyn Campbell, Jayden Salts, Carley Cook, Abigail Taylor, Kailey Dixon, Jules Johnson and Tori Coffman.

The sophomore class has combined to go 90-11 over their two years. They won the conference as freshmen last season and finished in sixth-place at the NJCAA World Series.

"This is such a great group of sophomores," Sauceman said. "They have brought a lot of success to this softball program. I am extremely proud of all of them and all they have accomplished. They will be greatly missed after this season." 

GAME ONE: No. 7 Walters State 7, Roane State 2

In game one, Brooklyn Copley smashed two home runs in her first two at-bats, while Johnson smacked one too. 

In the circle, Lawing improved to 13-3 with the win. Lawing pitched all seven innings, allowing two runs and struck out one. 

Walters State got on the board first in the second inning, as Copley led things off and smashed a solo home run. The Lady Senators doubled their lead in the third as Taylor singled, advanced to second on an error, advanced to third on a groundout and scored on a Nora Mack sacrifice fly that made it 2-0. 

Roane State tied the game in the fourth with a two-run home run, but Walters State got the lead back in the bottom half of the inning as Copley led off with a solo shot to make it 3-2. Roane State threatened to get the run back in the fifth with the leadoff hitter reaching, but Imari Golden quickly shut that down as she grabbed a lineout and flipped to first for the double-play.

In the bottom of the fifth, Dixon led off with a bunt single. Dixon stole second and came home on a two-run bomb by Johnson that made it 5-2.

Walters State's final two runs came in the bottom of the sixth, as Campbell walked and Kendal Mason reached on an error. That brought up Dixon, and she drove both runs in with a double. 

Lawing set Roane down in the seventh and took the win.

GAME TWO: No. 7 Walters State 10, Roane State 2 (6 Innings)

In game two, the Lady Senators scored six in the second and went on for the win.

Makayla Ramsey got the start in the circle and improved to 6-2 with the victory. Ramsey allowed two runs and struck out two. 

The Lady Senators picked up a run in the first, as Dixon singled, stole second and scored on a Johnson RBI single. In the second, Walters State pulled away with six runs. Those runs came on an error that scored a run, an RBI single by Mack and a grand slam by Johnson that made it 7-0. The home run was Johnson's 15th of the season. 

The score remained 7-0 until the sixth when Roane State scored two runs. The Lady Senators needed three runs in the bottom half of the inning to end the game early and got them, as Mack doubled home two runs and Copley singled to score Mack. 

Up Next:

Walters State and Roane State will be back in action on Tuesday, playing two games at Roane State. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. 

Rob Harvey

Walters State Community College

Sports Information Director

Cell: (423) 779-8880

Email: sportsinfo@ws.edu

Website: www.ws.edu/athletics