Mountaineers sweep Furman
From staff reports

Michelle Lighton scored the winning run in the second inning and hit a home run in the sixth, while Kayla Richardson threw a one-hitter to give Appalachian State a 3-0 win over Furman Sunday.

Richardson not only threw her 19th complete game of the season, but also broke the ASU single-season record with her 12th victory this year. She also broke the career wins record with her 32nd overall victory.

The Mountaineers (22-23, 14-9 SoCon) got on the scoreboard in the second inning when Lindsay Whitlock dropped down a sacrifice bunt and Lighton scored on an error by the shortstop.

Appalachian added a run in the fifth when Megan Rembielak drove in Ashley Gaston with a sacrifice fly. Lighton capped off the scoring in the sixth with her fifth homer of the year.

The 14 wins is the most conference victories for Appalachian in school history. Furman fell to 15-25, 7-10.
Saturday’s games.

Katie Boyd walked four times and scored the game-winning run on a double by Brittany Gaston to give Appalachian State a dramatic come from behind 4-3 win over Furman in game one Saturday afternoon. The Mountaineers finished off the sweep with a 6-1 win in game two.

Furman struck first, scoring in the second inning on an RBI single by Meredith Mielke. Appalachian State took the lead in the bottom of the third when Lighton drove in Sarah Rappe and Rembielak with a double to left center field.

The Paladins retook the lead on a two-run homer by Kate Termini in the bottom of the sixth. Termini, who came into the game batting .143, went 3-for-4 on the day with two home runs and three RBIs.

The Mountaineers’ comeback win is there third of the season after having one all of last season.

Rembielak had two hits for the Mountaineers while Ashley Gaston and Brittany Gaston both made diving catches in the outfield to save extra-base hits.

Richardson earned the complete game win for the Mountaineers, allowing three hits and two earned runs while striking out eight.

Appalachian did not need the late inning heroics in game two, pouncing on Furman in the first inning for two runs with an Lighton RBI fielder’s choice and an RBI single by Ashley Stubbs.

Furman got on the board in the second on a Termini home run, but Appalachian State came right back with a run in the third and three in the fourth. Lighton drove in Boyd with a single in the third to make it 3-1 and Lindsay Whitlock, Ashley Gaston, Andrea McIntyre and Rembielak all singled, while Lighton drove in her third run of the game with an RBI walk.

Stubbs went six innings in the circle, allowing just four hits and one earned run. Teri Fister finished up the game, striking out the final batter of the game to preserve the win.

The Mountaineers finish off their final home stand of the season when they host USC Upstate Tuesday in a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m.