CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Queens University of Charlotte dropped a doubleheader to Tusculum College in the home South Atlantic Conference opener at Park Road Park on Saturday, March 25.
 
Queens (14-19, 0-6) let a late lead slip as they fell in game one, 3-2.  Tusculum's (18-14, 4-2) offense then exploded in game two to run away with an 11-2 win. Ashton Whitaker, Sabrina Martinez and Elaina Frantellizzi each had two hits on the afternoon.
 
Game One: Tusculum 3, Queens 2
Both teams left runners in scoring position through the first three innings, but that all changed by the fourth inning.
 
First, Tusculum finally got on the scoreboard when Michelle Miller found some two-out luck. She snuck a base hit into right-centerfield to plate Taylor Johnson and put the Pioneers up 1-0.
 
That lead wouldn't last long though as the Royals finally figured out solved the mystery of TC starting pitcher Taylor Plemons. After one out, Queens proceeded to load the bases for first baseman Kelly Winter. On a 2-1 count, Winter bounced a base knock through the left side to score both Abby Lathan and Elaina Frantellizzi.
 
Now with a 2-1 lead, QU starting pitcher Courtney Pearson kept the Pioneers at bay through the fifth and sixth innings. Once the game moved to the seventh inning, Pearson looked poised to close out a victory, but the Pioneers had other ideas.
 
With two outs and runners on the corners, Emily Hester took a 1-2 pitch to left-centerfield to plate a pair of runs and steal game one, 3-2.  
 
The loss ruined what was a solid outing for Courtney Pearson who had scattered seven hits with six strikeouts.
 
Game Two: Tusculum 11, Queens 2 (Five Innings)
After Tusculum scored a pair of runs in the top half of the first inning, Queens came right back in the bottom of the first with some offense of their own.
 
Down to their final out of the frame, the Royals got some two-out magic going when Ashton Whitaker slapped a single back up the middle. Then, after an infield hit from Sabrina Martinez, Abby Lathan roped a single down the left field line to narrow the TC lead to 2-1.
 
Unfortunately, that was the last bit of good news for a while as the Pioneers offense scored three runs in the second inning, one in the third and five in the fourth inning top open up an 11-1 lead.
 
Queens did add one more run in the bottom of the fifth inning when Alyssa Strickler sliced an RBI single through the left side of the infield to plate Lathan. That was it for the Royals though as Tusculum forced a fielder's choice in the next at bat to close out the doubleheader.
 
Up Next
The Royals will look to get back on the winning side of the ledger on Tuesday, March 28 when they make the short trip over to Wingate.