BREVARD, N.C. - Agnes Scott's softball team had a very productive 48 hours this weekend, as they started off on Friday with a sweep of Salem College in Winston Salem, N.C., before finishing things off on Saturday afternoon by downing Brevard in a doubleheader on the road. With the four wins, the Scotties (4-4) are off to their best start since the 2014 season, when they started the season with a 5-3 mark.

Friday, Game 1 Recap: Agnes Scott 6, Salem 2

In the first contest of the weekend, sophomore pitcher Amanda Barnes was the story of the contest, both on the mound and in the batter's box. Barnes pitched a complete game for the Scotties, allowing only 5 hits and 2 earned runs, while striking out 4 Spirit batters. Barnes aided her own cause at the plate, as the sophomore showed that 2025 is shaping up to be a new look for the Scotties. Barnes, who a year ago had only one plate appearance for the Scotties, went 2-for-3 from the plate, drew a walk, scored twice and had an RBI to wrap up her impressive game. 

The Scotties opened the scoring early, as they plated 4 runners in the top of the 2nd inning. Barnes picked up her RBI when she laced a single down the middle which scored Ellie Settle. Taylor Selby then followed that up with a single that scored Kenzie Beaudoin from third, and Sadie McCallum finished off the scoring in the inning when she ripped a double down third base line, scoring Barnes and Bella Leonardi to open up the 4-0 advantage.

McCallum followed up her 2 RBI double with a sacrifice fly in the 4th inning to give the Scotties a 5-0 lead, scoring Selby from third. After the Spirits closed the gap by 2 runs in the bottom of the inning, Barnes scored in the top off the fifth off a single by Selby to finish off the scoring, and the Spirits, by a score of 6-2.

Friday, Game 2 Recap: Agnes Scott 17, Salem 3 (6 innings)

The flood gates would open for the Scotties in Game 2 of the twinbill, as the offense exploded for two huge innings and overcame an early, 2-0, hole, to dominate the Spirits and run away with the "run rule" shortened contest, 17-3, in 6 innings. The Scotties plated 6 runs in the second inning and 11 more in the 6th to complete the sweep. Again, one of the story lines of the contest was a pitcher helping themself, as starting pitcher Kyra Hornsby had a strong day on the mound and at the plate. Hornsby would pick up the win on the mound, pitching 4.1 innings while striking out 3 and allowing 5 hits. At the plate, Hornsby, who like Barnes from Game 1, did not factor in the batting rotation a year ago (5 total at-bats in 2024), helped her own cause with a 3-for-4 performance and an RBI.

The Spirits would strike first blood in the contest, however, as they opened up a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning behind a double from NaVaeha George, which scored two runs to give the Spirits their first lead of the day. The celebration would be short-lived, though, as the Scotties struck back immediately in the top of the 2nd inning. A Sadie McCallum walk would score Jada Howard in a bases-loaded situation to bring the Scotties within one. Taylor Selby would follow that up with a two-run single which scored Bryn Greenwood and Bella Leonardi, giving the Scotties the lead. Freshman Ellie Settle followed with a three-run homer, scoring McCallum and Selby, as the Scotties stretched their lead to 6-2.

George would once again pick up an RBI for Salem in the bottom of the 5th inning, as she drove in a run to bring the Spirits back to within 3 runs of the lead. However, the Scotties would drop 11 runs in the top of the 6th to put the game completely out of reach. PresLee Hix was the star of the inning, as she belted a triple and a double and had 4 RBIs in the inning.

For the contest, seven different Scotties would have multiple-hit performances. The pitchers in the contest, Bryn Greenwood and Kyra Hornsby, would both also have three hits on the day, while Hix, Selby, Howard, McCallum and Leonardi would all finish with two hits apiece. McCallum was perfect in the game at the plate, going 2-for-2, with 2 walks, 3 RBIs and scoring 3 times. Settle would also finish with 3 RBIs, while Greenwood, Leonardi and Howard would all score three times.

Saturday, Game 1 Recap: Agnes Scott 14, Brevard 2 (6 innings)

What seemed like a pitcher's dual in Game 1 against the Tornados (2-2) turned into a rout as the Scotties once again used a few big innings to run away with the shortened contest, taking out Brevard by a score of 14-2. Neither team would plate a run until the Scotties exploded for 5 in the top of the 4th and ran away with the contest from there.

Bryn Greenwood (1-2) took the mound for the Scotties, as she pitched a gem, striking out 6 in a complete game effort, allowing 5 hits and 2 earned runs over 6 innings. In a storyline which sounded familiar all weekend, Greenwood also helped herself in a big way with her bat, going 2-for-4 with 5 RBIs on the day. 

The Scotties opened the scoring in the 4th inning as Kenzie Beaudoin blasted a double to score Taylor Selby and break open the scoreless contest. Three more Scotties would rip singles to score teammates, as Greenwood's single would score two runners and give the Scotties a 5-0 lead headed into the bottom of the inning.The Scotties would add three more in the top of the fifth, before Brevard would finally get on the board off a two-run home run by J. Harlow, narrowing the Scottie lead to 8-2. The top of the 6th would be the Scotties' big inning, though, as they scored 6 runs, capped off by a three-run single by Greenwood to give the Scotties their final runs of the game, and the final 14-2 spread.

In addition to Greenwood's big game at the plate, Kyra Hornsby continued her hot streak at the plate for the weekend, finishing 3-for-4 with two runs scored and 2 RBIs. Other Scotties achieving multiple hits in the contest included Settle, Beaudoin, Howard and Greenwood with 2 apiece. The first six batters for the Scotties all scored twice in the contest.

Saturday, Game 2 Recap: Agnes Scott 9, Brevard 4 (6 innings, darkness)

In the final contest of the weekend, the Scotties were once again aided by a big inning at the plate, this time plating 7 runs in the top of the 4th inning to help lead them to the 9-4 win in a contest shortened to 6 innings due to darkness. Amanda Barnes (2-1) picked up her second win of the weekend, striking out 4 in 3.2 innings of work, as all three of the sophomore pitching trio made appearances on the mound for the Scotties.

The Scotties used their baserunning to aid their cause in the contest, as they opened the scoring in the top of the 1st inning as Taylor Selby stole second base, and an errant throw by Brevard's catcher allowed PresLee Hix to score from third to give Agnes Scott the early 1-0 lead. Once again, runs were hard to come by early in the contest, but the Scotties produced 8 hits in the top of the 4th and scored 7 times to put breathing room between themselves and the Tornados. Bella Leonardi highlighted the inning with a 3 RBI double to left field that scored Barnes, Howard and Hornsby.

The Tornados rallied in the bottom of the frame, however, as they managed their first big inning of the day, scoring 4 runs before Kyra Hornsby returned to the mound and struck the final Brevard batter out to end the inning and the rally. The Scotties would add one more insurance run in the top of the 5th inning, as PresLee Hix would single in Bella Leonardi for the final, 9-4, advantage.

Bella Leonardi would lead the way for the Scotties offense, finishing the contest 2-for-3, with 3 RBIs and scored twice. Taylor Selby, Kenzie Beaudoin, and Jada Howard would all finish with two hits in the contest. Five different Scotties picked up stolen bases on the day, as well. Greenwood finished off the game on the mound for Agnes Scott, pitching 2.0 innings and allowing no runs on 2 hits.

The Scotties will return to the field on Wednesday, March 6, as they host Wartburg (0-4) in a doubleheader at Oakhurst Park in Decatur. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.