Trojan softball team reaches Conference Carolinas tournament finals

By News-Argus Staff
Published in Sports on April 26, 2014 11:17 PM

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BURLINGTON -- Carly White scattered five hits in a complete-game effort as the University of Mount Olive reached the Conference Carolinas softball tournament final with a 4-1 victory over King (Tenn.) on Saturday afternoon.

The Trojans (23-24 overall) play at 1 p.m. today with a berth to the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional on the line.

White (11-5) permitted a sixth-inning earned run, struck out three and walked one. She induced seven groundouts and 11 flyouts against the Tornado, who swept a doubleheader from the Trojans less than three weeks ago.

Ashleigh Mason paced the UMO offense with two hits and a stolen base. Kelsey Akers, Caitlin Ewers, Savannah Becker, Kalie Smith, Katie Moore and Tiffany Hawley each provided one hit.

Becker, Moore and White each had one RBI.

The Trojans scored a single run in the second inning, two in the third and one in the sixth.

Lauren McGrath's two-run single ignited a fourth-inning outburst as Mount Olive upset regular-season champion Limestone, 6-2, in second-round play earlier Saturday.

Beth Overman added a two-RBI double to make it 4-2.

The Trojans plated additional runs in the seventh, giving Megan Johnston plenty of room to record the save in a three-inning appearance. White emerged as the winning pitcher, giving up a pair of unearned runs on three hits in four innings.

Akers paced the UMO offense with three hits.

White threw a six-hitter during the Trojans' opening-round, 4-0 shutout over fifth-seeded Erskine. White retired the Flying Fleet in order in the first, fourth and sixth innings.

Erskine threatened in the seventh, but White sealed the outcome with an infield pop-up and game-ending strikeout. White logged five strikeouts inside the circle.

Men's tennis

SUMTER, S.C. -- Regular-season champion University of Mount Olive is one victory shy of returning to the NCAA Division II men's tennis tournament for the second time in three seasons.

The top-seeded Trojans (17-1 overall) advanced to today's championship final against sixth-seeded Barton after claiming a 5-2 slugfest over fifth-seeded Limestone. It was a rematch of the 2012 conference tournament title match.

UMO swept the doubles courts.

The top-seeded tandem of Edgar Bub-Rik Wolthuis slipped past the Saints' Antoine Le Dore-Stefano Soares, 8-6. The duos of Matt Finnerty-Henric Falkenberg and Stanley Roffe-Brahm Moolman combined to drop just seven games in pro-set (eight-game) action.

Bub and sixth-seeded Lautaro Vazquez punched the Trojans' ticket the finals with straight-set victories at Nos. 1 and 6 singles, respectively.

Limestone prevailed at No. 3 and 4 singles.

Mount Olive launched its tournament title quest with a 5-0 trouncing of eighth-seeded Belmont Abbey in quarterfinal-round play on Friday. The claimed all three doubles points.

Paul Wiederspahn and Vazquez completed the shutout with straight-set victories at Nos. 5 and 6 singles, respectively. The two players combined to lose just two games.

Women's tennis

SUMTER, S.C. -- Regular-season champion and perennial powerhouse Erskine handed the University of Mount Olive a season-ending, 5-0 loss in semifinal-round action of the 2014 Conference Carolinas tournament on Saturday afternoon.

The fifth-seeded Trojans advanced with a 5-4 win over fourth-seeded Barton on Friday. The top-seeded tandem of Francesca Ceppi-Roxanne Chouinard and third-seeded duo of Samara Paldinho-Paulina Delgado each triumphed in doubles play.

Ceppi, Chouinard and Alejandra Hernandez each earned a singles point. Hernandez won a pivotal first-set tiebreaker to help UMO advance to the semifinals.

UMO finished the year 12-9 overall after a loss to Limestone in the third-place match.

Women's lacrosse

GAFFNEY, S.C. -- Riann Daziel scored the lone goal in the University of Mount Olive's season-ending, 11-1 loss to Pfeiffer in semifinal-round play of the 2014 Conference Carolinas tournament on Friday.

Daziel scored with 9:11 left in the second half.

Goalkeeper Hannah Knight had eight saves for the Trojans, who concluded the year 12-6 overall.