No. 20 Gaston College takes back-to-back DH sweeps, including Region 10 openers

Gaston College's No. 20-ranked softball team completed a weekend of shutout victories, including two in the Rhinos' Region 10 openers on Friday.

Gaston College beat USC Sumter 7-0 and 12-0 in five innings on Friday at Gastonia's CaroMont Health Park, then won 8-0 in six innings and 5-0 at Cleveland Community College on Saturday.

The results improve the Rhinos to 26-3 overall and 2-0 in Region 10 play - and within striking distance of a school record for consecutive scoreless innings.

Including three scoreless innings against Lackawanna, Pa., on Feb. 28 at Raleigh's Walnut Creek Classic, Gaston College pitchers has completed 28 consecutive scoreless innings.

The record is 40 consecutive scoreless innings last season.

"The pitching was really good this weekend," Rhinos coach Michael Steuerwald said. "Aidan Ledbetter and Savanna Mullins pitched 'lights out' on Friday and then Sophia Crist set the tone in today's opener and Charlee Kelly went five strong innings and then got Tea Cornett an inning and gave Aidan (a Crest High graduate) an inning in front of her home crowd to close out the seventh."

Ledbetter threw a one-hitter with eight strikeouts in Friday's opener that saw her fire 4 1/3 hitless innings. Then Mullins threw a two-hitter with four strikeouts in Friday's nightcap, Crist a two-hitter with five strikeouts in Saturday's opener and Kelly (5 innings, 7 strikeouts), Cornett (1 inning, 2 strikeouts) and Ledbetter (1 inning, 1 strikeout) combined on a five-hitter.

Offensively, Mary Hinson (8 hits, 2 doubles, home run, 4 RBIs), Katelyn Brandon (8 hits, 3 doubles, 4 RBIs), Mallie Courson (6 hits, 1 RBI), Emery Skinner (5 hits, double, 2 RBIs), Jalyn Kopp (4 hits, 2 RBIs), Miranda Wall (4 hits, 2 doubles, 3 RBIs) and McKenna Jones (3 hits, double, 5 RBIs) led Gaston College.

The Rhinos host non-league opponent East Georgia State in a 3 p.m. Wednesday doubleheader then returns to Region 10 action with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday. Both doubleheaders will be played at Gastonia's CaroMont Health Park.

"We talked on Friday in our Region 10 opener about jumping on teams right away to send a message," said Steuerwald, whose program has won conference titles in each of the past three seasons and two National Junior College Athletic Association World Series appearances. "And we responded really well. We tend to be everybody in our conferences biggest game just because of the success we've had. We have to show up with energy and be ready to play."