Lady Bulldogs sweep Meridian

PERKINSTON – Kaitlin Lee went 4-for-7 and picked up her 13^th win on the mound, and Nora Keehn threw a one-hitter as Mississippi Gulf Coast swept Meridian.

"She had a good week at practice," Gulf Coast coach Kenneth Long said of Lee. "We did some extra stuff with slappers this week, and it really paid off."

The Lady Bulldogs won 6-0 in Game 1 and needed five innings to win the second 9-1. They improved to 27-3, 11-3 MACJC after just their third doubleheader at Ross-Smith Field this season. They moved into a second-place tie with Itawamba, which split with East Central.

Meridian falls to 9-21, 6-10.

Gulf Coast returns to action Wednesday when Southwest visits Perkinston. The doubleheader starts at 3 p.m.

Hannah Melendrez had a two-run double in the third, one of three hits for her in Game 1.

Alyssa Hardy and Kelli Berry had back-to-back RBI doubles in a four-run fifth inning.

Keehn (8-1) struck out eight without walking anyone, allowing only a first-inning single. In her last four outings, she a no-hitter and another one-hit performance over four innings.

"Nora was sharp," Long said. "She had good movement. She threw her curveball a lot today."

Lee went 2-for-4, and Izzy Werdann added two hits.

Hardy opened the scoring in Game 2 with another RBI double in the second inning. Deborah Elmore had an RBI double in a two-run third and an RBI single as part of a five-run fourth.

"Deborah struggled the first game," Long said, "but she came back that second game."

Lee and Elmore went 2-for-3 in the second game, and Lee scattered five hits while striking out five without a walk to improve to 13-1.