KINGSPORT, Tenn. (April 26, 2019) â€" Twice facing elimination, Milligan College's softball team twice was up to the challenge Friday on day three of the Appalachian Athletic Conference tournament. Milligan started the day with an upset over top-seeded and No. 11-ranked Truett McConnell, 2-1 in eight innings, before blanking Reinhardt University for the third time this season, 6-0.
 
Milligan is now 3-0 in the conference tournament when facing elimination and will have a chance of winning the tournament title Saturday.
 
Butcher, Forgety shine once again
With the season on the line, the Buffs turned to their defense, and the defense came through. Senior Kassi Butcher went toe-to-toe with the AAC pitcher of the year, matching her for hits in a scoreless effort through regulation innings before Milligan won its first game of the day in extras. Freshman Erin Forgety then threw a complete game of her own, a four-hit shutout of Reinhardt, to put the Buffs through to the final day.
 
Butcher pitched all eight innings against Truett and allowed five hits, one earned run and one walk with one strikeout. She faced only three over the minimum through the first seven frames and only once ran into trouble, after Milligan had taken the lead in the top of the eighth.
 
Milligan took that lead after freshman Macie Herrmann started off the inning with a single through the left side. Fellow freshman Lindsey Slagle bunted Herrmann to second, and senior Madison Grindstaff followed with an RBI double down the left field line to break the scoreless tie. Neelee Griffith later came through with an RBI to make it 2-0.
 
Butcher ran into her only trouble in the bottom half, as three hits and a Milligan error allowed one run to come home and Truett to load the bases. However, a ground ball ended the threat and the game, sending Truett to its ninth loss of the season, and only the fourth loss to an AAC team. Milligan accounted for two of those four losses.
 
In the nightcap, Milligan pounced early and took a 1-0 lead on a two-out double by Erica Roller. It proved to be all the scoring the Buffs would need, but they still tacked on one more in the second, three in the fourth and one in the seventh. Savannah Nocera drove in the run in the second on a single to right, then drove in another run in the fourth on a fielder's choice. Griffith did the most damage in the fourth with a two-out single up the middle, scoring two.
 
Forgety's final winning line included seven innings, four hits, no runs, two walks and five K's. She faced seven over the minimum in her 14th complete game and fourth shutout of the season.
 
Kirstan Beaver went 2-for-3 to lead the Buffs in game one. Roller went 3-for-4 in game two.
 
Up next
Milligan's next game will be another elimination game Saturday morning at 11 a.m. back here at Brickyard Park. The Buffs will face Point University, whom they split on the road back on March 8. A win over Point would pit Milligan against Brenau for a shot at the AAC tournament title. Milligan would then need two wins over the Golden Tigers, with games set for 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. (if necessary).