ROCK HILL, SC—Radford’s Chelsea Kelley tossed her second consecutive four-hitter in two days to lead Radford to a 5-0 victory over Winthrop, Sunday afternoon at Terry Field in a game televised on ESPNU.
Kelley allowed only five runners to reach base the entire game and also had four strikeouts as she improves to 19-6 on the year. Megan Evans started for the Lady Eagles (24-22, 7-7 Big South) and up until the seventh inning she kept the Highlanders high powered offense in check. Evans allowed only one run in the first six innings, which came on a rundown play in the fourth inning. Then Evans ran into trouble and allowed four runs in the top of the seventh as she falls to 10-7 on the season.
Radford (31-13, 16-2 Big South) took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth as Shannon Keefe scored during a rundown between second and first. Keefe reached on a fielder’s choice and was followed by a single to right by Hope Creasy. However, Ashleigh Jackson’s throw to second caught Creasy off the base around first and the rundown began. After the ball was exchanged three times between Winthrop players, Keefe charged home and just beat the throw by Taylor Wright.
The Highlanders added four more runs in the seventh, highlighted by a two-run home run by Kristen Shifflett.
Megan Chapman went 2-for-3 on the day and finished the three-game series 7-for-8. Pearl Coleshill and Ashlee Revell had the other two hits for Winthrop.
Shifflett finished 3-for-4 with a run and two RBI while Taylor Cunningham and Lauren Williams each scored and drove in a run.
Winthrop heads to Boiling Springs, NC on Tuesday as it wraps-up its three-game series with Gardner-Webb in a single game at 5 p.m.
