TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – With no rain delays in sight, the T-Mobile Crimson Classic continued play from Tuscaloosa today. Longwood squared up against No. 9 Alabama and Mercer, falling by scores of 5-0 and 2-0 in both contests.

Maggie Chapin got the nod for the Lancers against the Crimson Tide and Reggie Kanagawa began the game in the circle against Mercer. Chapin threw 1.1 hitless innings before Er'ron Burton entered in her relief against Alabama, while Kanagawa threw a complete seven innings against the Bears.

Today's games snapped a five-game Longwood win streak and marked the first time that the Lancers have fallen to a non-Power 5 school this season.

The Lancers played a closely-contested game against Alabama, their third nationally ranked and sixth Power 5 opponent so far on the season. Jaden Pone got things started in her first at bat for Longwood with a single against Montana Fouts, the Tide's top arm.

Despite picking up a hit early on, a 4-run second inning by the Tide proved to be the difference, as only one more run would be scored for the rest of the game. An excellent day from Fouts helped keep the Lancers at bay, who managed three hits and no runs on the day.

"Game one was a game that regardless of the outcome makes you better," said head coach Dr. Megan Brown on Longwood's loss to Alabama. "Iron sharpens iron, and today was an opportunity to grow and sharpen ourselves for what will be a tough rest of our season."

Following their loss to the Crimson Tide, Longwood set its sights on Mercer, whom they defeated 8-2 the previous day. While the bats were swinging for the Lancers in Friday's win, the story was much different today. Both teams held each other scoreless through the first five innings of play.

Mercer would finally break the tie late in the game, scoring on RBI singles in the sixth and seventh to gain a 2-0 lead. Despite recording a hit in the bottom of the seventh to start the rally, the Lancers were unable to get any runs across the plate in their inning of the day.

"As they say, hitting is about timing," said Dr. Brown. "Being able to adjust quickly and intentionally is key for success in our game."

Longwood concludes play at the T-Mobile Crimson Classic tomorrow at 10 a.m. against Robert Morris University. The Lancers will then take No. 9 Alabama at 12:30 p.m. to round out the weekend.

"We have a lot of good softball ahead of us tomorrow," said Dr. Brown. "We need to come out strong against two tough opponents."

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