DUNCAN, SC – Senior right fielder Katie Smith, junior left fielder Emily Konz, and sophomore third baseman Madalyn White all registered three hits to lead 21st-ranked Francis Marion University to a 9-1 record-setting win over fourth-seeded Young Harris College, Friday afternoon (April 26) on the second day of the Conference Carolinas Softball Tournament.  The victory was the Patriots' 43rd of the season setting a new program record for victories in a season.
 
Top-seeded Francis Marion (43-10) advances to face second-seeded North Greenville University in the semifinals on Saturday at 2 p.m.  The winner of that game goes to the championship game on Sunday.  Young Harris (29-23) drops into the losers' bracket of the double-elimination event and will play again later on Friday.
 
The Patriots pounded out 15 hits to back the pitching of sophomore southpaw Alyssa Poston (25-4).  The Hartsville native allowed only four hits, while fanning nine and walking just one.  Her victory total ties her for second in NCAA Division II this season.
 
In addition to the trio with three hits apiece, senior catcher Lauren Smallwood and junior shortstop Makayla Cuthbertson both had two hits.
 
Francis Marion batted around against Mountain Lion lefty Kylie Ferguson (5-9) in the bottom of the first and scored five times.  White and Konz both reached on singles.  Senior first baseman Taylor Watford was then hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs and junior second baseman Peyton Gale was also hit by a pitch to force in the game's first run.  Smith followed with a bases-clearing double to the right-center field fence to hand FMU a 4-0 advantage.  Smith later scored on a two-out bunt single by Cuthbertson.
 
Over the past seven games, Smith is batting 12-for-21 with 10 runs batted in.
 
Second baseman Addie Heal led off the Young Harris second inning with a solo homer to right center, but Poston recovered to strike out the side.
 
FMU stranded two runners in the second and the bases loaded in the third.
 
Smallwood led off the Francis Marion fifth inning with her sixth home run of the season, and the 17th of her four-year career. Later in the frame, Watford delivered an RBI-double to score White as the Patriots assumed a 7-1 lead.  Watford continues to lead Division II in RBIs, now with 75, and it was her fourth two-base hit of the tournament.
 
Run-scoring singles by sophomore designated player Emma Moberg and Cuthbertson in the bottom of the sixth invoked the eight-run mercy rule and ended the game.
 
FMU head coach Stacey Vallee, the 2024 conference Coach of the Year, now stands only four wins shy of 600 for her career.
 
 
#21 Francis Marion 9, Young Harris 1 (Apr 26, 2024 at Duncan, S.C.)
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Young Harris......... 010 000  -  1  4  0      (29-23)
Francis Marion...... 500 022  -  9 15  0      (43-10)
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Pitchers: Young Harris - Kylie Ferguson; Grace Young(5); Gracie Hughes(6) and Hannah Rizzuto.
Francis Marion - Alyssa Poston and Lauren Smallwood.
Win-Alyssa Poston (25-4)  Loss-Kylie Ferguson (5-9)  T-2:11  A-50
HR YHC_SB - Addie Heal.
HR FMU_SB - Lauren Smallwood.
Weather: light drizzle, cloudy
G Young faced 3 batters in the 6th.
G Hughes faced 2 batters in the 6th.