LYNCHBURG, Tenn. — The Motlow Bucks softball team will host TCCAA rival Cleveland State this weekend for a four-game series on the Moore County campus. Saturday’s doubleheader begins at 2 p.m. and Sunday’s play starts at noon. Admission is free.

The Bucks (9-16, 4-8) dropped a four-game series to Chattanooga State, ranked No. 10 in the nation in the latest NJCAA poll, last weekend in Chattanooga. Motlow has now played two of the country’s top 10 teams, with Walters State, who Motlow faced two weeks ago, ranked No. 4 in the nation.

The Tigers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning of Saturday’s series opener, a 7-3 Chattanooga win. Motlow scratched back with two runs in the second but couldn’t put together a rally until scoring once in the seventh. Motlow got home runs from Tullahoma sophomore Demi Garner, a solo shot, and Shelbyville sophomore Cenzie McAnally, a two-run blast.

Mary Bradley, a freshman from Murfreesboro, took the loss in a complete-game pitching performance. Bradley allowed just eight hits and three walks with three strikeouts.

Saturday’s second game was a wash for Motlow. The Tigers scored six in the first inning and three more in the second and went on to a 9-1 win in five innings. Lynchburg sophomore Jordan Lund had a double and drove in Motlow’s only run.

Sunday’s first game featured a four-hit complete game from Chattanooga’s pitcher in an 8-0, six-inning win for the Tigers. Garner had three hits for the Bucks. Bradley and Hannah Burks, another Shelbyville sophomore, allowed only three earned runs and nine hits with eight strikeouts.

The Tigers took the series finale 5-1. Motlow scratched out three hits, but Chattanooga’s pitching kept the Bucks off balance. Bradley allowed only six hits and two earned runs with four strikeouts in five innings. Susanna Cruit, a sophomore from Huntsville, pitched a perfect final inning.

For more Motlow Bucks Softball news and information, visit the sports information website by clicking here. •

{The Lynchburg Times is an independently-owned, community newspaper located in Lynchburg, Tennessee the home of The Jack Daniel Distillery. We focus on public service, non-partisan, rural journalism. We cover the Metro Moore County government, local tourism, Moore County schools, high school sports, Motlow State Community College, as well as whiskey industry news and regional and state stories that affect our readers.}