Ruehl homers three times, drives in nine runs to complete sweep over Pellissippi State

KNOXVILLE, TN – Walters State's Lauren Ruehl had quite the afternoon on Tuesday against Pellissippi State, homering three times and driving in nine runs in game two to lead the Lady Senators to the sweep. Walters State won 17-2 in game one and 19-2 in game two. 

With the sweep, the Lady Senators improved to 26-20 overall and 19-7 in TCCAA play.

GAME ONE: Walters State 17, Pellissippi State 2 (5 Innings)

In game one, Kacey Pillion and Alayna Ross each homered in the win.

Pillion had three hits in the game and drove in three runs, while Ross collected two hits and had four RBIs. Nyah Mullins, Jordan Pena, Brenna Hunley and Allie Seritt all had two hits apiece, and Camryn Allen drove in two runs. 

In the circle, Summer Smith got the start and threw 3.1 innings. Smith allowed two runs on six hits and struck out one. Carla Burge replaced Smith with one out in the fourth and threw the final 1.2 innings. Burge didn't allow a hit and struck out one. 

The first inning saw 12 batters come to the plate for Walters State, and nine of them scored. Beech led off with a single, and Pillion singled her home to make it 1-0. Following a Ruehl walk, Ross smoked a three-run home run to get the lead to 4-0. Mullins and Pena followed up with singles, and Hunley doubled in Mullins. Serritt then singled home Pena, and Allen scored Hunley on a groundout to make it 7-0. The final two runs of the inning scored on a Beech groundout that allowed Seritt to cross the plate and a Pillion solo shot to make it 9-0.

That was the score until the fourth, when Walters State tacked on eight more runs. Those runs scored on a Ross RBI double, a Mullins RBI double, a Pena RBI double, a Hunley RBI single, an Allen RBI single, a Pillion RBI single, a groundout that scored Allen and a wild pitch that allowed Beech to cross the plate to make it 17-0.

Pellissippi scored two runs in the bottom of the fourth, but that was all. 

GAME TWO: Walters State 19, Pellissippi State 2 (5 Innings)

Game two was the Ruehl show, as she had four hits, three home runs and nine RBIs. 

For the season, Ruehl now has 13 home runs and 35 RBIs. 

Along with Ruehl, Seritt and Mullins each homered. Mullins had four hits and three RBIs, and Seritt drove in two runs. Hunley also had two RBIs, and Addison Beech, Pena, Ross, Hunley, Allen and Seritt each had two hits. 

In the circle, Burge got the start and threw a complete game. Burge gave up two unearned runs on four hits and struck out two. 

Ruehl got things going in the opening inning of game two, smacking a two-run home run to put Walters State in front. In the second, the Lady Senators added to their lead as Seritt hit a solo home run over the fence in center to make it 3-0.

In the third, Walters State really began to pull away. Pena led off with a single, and Ruehl scored her with a single. Ross followed with a single, and Mullins doubled in a run to make it 5-0. Hunley was next up, and she singled in two more runs. The final run of the inning came when Maysin Kannapin grounded out to score Hunley to make it 8-0.

The final 11 runs for Walters State came in the fourth inning as 14 batters stepped to the plate. Ruehl started the scoring with a two-run homer, and Mullins doubled in another run that got the advantage to 11-0. Allen then singled home a run, and Seritt singled in Hunley to make it 13-0. After a Beech RBI single, Ruehl hit her second home run of the inning, a grand slam, to make it 18-0. The final run came two batters later when Mullins smoked a solo homer over the fence in left to make it 19-0.

Pellissippi State got two runs in the bottom of the fourth, but that was all. 

Up Next:

Walters State is back in action on Saturday, hosting Cleveland State. First pitch of the doubleheader is set for 12 pm ET.