Hinds Lady Eagles win two games Sunday

The Hinds Lady Eagles closed out the Meridian Rush Invitational Sunday with a pair of wins over Parkland Community College from Illinois and NJCAA Division 2 No. 2 ranked LSU-Eunice by scores of 5-4 and 8-4, respectively.

In the game against Parkland CC, pitcher Natalie Parker held Parkland’s offense at bay for the majority of the game.

She went 6.1 innings and gave up four runs, two of which came in the seventh inning. Parker scattered seven hits through her six-plus innings.

Ashley Lopez earned the save for the Lady Eagles as she entered the game with one out in the top of the seventh inning. Lopez threw three pitches and collected two outs to close the door on a 5-4 win.

Offensively, the Eagles were led by freshman Savannah Bryant who was coming off a four-hit, five RBI Saturday night, which included a home run. Bryant added another three hits (all doubles) to her total on the weekend to go along an additional three RBI’s she collected against Parkland.

Lopez and Hanna Wilkerson also added RBI’s of their own on a pair of singles.

In the game against LSU-Eunice, Cassidy Rhea was stellar on the mound, just as she was the night before in her win against Marion Military where she only surrendered two runs.

Against LSU-Eunice, Rhea gave up four runs through 6.1 innings pitched, with three runs coming in the bottom of the seventh inning. Natalie Parker would earn her second win of the day as she pitched 2.2 innings in relief.

At the plate, the Eagles started slow, but kicked it into high gear after the third inning, scoring in four out of the next six innings.

Jessica Deming got the scoring started for the Lady Eagles with a sacrifice fly that drove in Parker who reached on a leadoff double.

In the fifth, Sadie Parker drove in Katie Cheeks who reached on a walk. Sadie was then driven in by Hanna Wilkerson who laced a single.

Hinds extended their lead to 4-1 in the top of the seventh by way of a Sadie Parker leadoff triple followed by a Natalie Parker double.

After surrendering their lead in the bottom of the seventh, the Lady Eagles put up four runs on the Lady Bengals in the top of the ninth inning.

The ninth-inning offensive onslaught was powered by a leadoff bunt-single by Sadie Parker, which moved the international tie-breaker runner, Kat Bruner, to third. Wilkerson followed that up with a two-RBI single. Ashley Lopez then singled herself before Jessica Deming cracked a two-run double giving Hinds an 8-4 lead and eventual victory.

With the two victories, Hinds improves to 4-2 overall on the season.

The Hinds Lady Eagles will be back in action Tuesday, Feb. 25, at home against the Bossier Parish Community College Lady Cavaliers (7-6). First pitch of game one of the doubleheader is scheduled for 3 p.m. Game two will follow at approximately 5 p.m.