Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 MEMPHIS, Tenn. â€" Transylvania softball struggled against a quick-hitting Rhodes squad in their season opener on Saturday, dropping a pair of games 9-0 and 7-5 on the road.
 
The first matchup of the 2014 season was a rough one for the Pioneers, as sophomore pitcher Katie Hulsman took a loss 7-0, recording one strikeout, 11 hits, and eight earned runs in four innings of work, while the Transylvania bats were silenced, recording zero hits.
 
Rhodes made the first mark on the board in the bottom of the first, as Erin Parker scored on a wild pitch to put the Lynx up 1-0. After an empty top of the second, a string of hits and aggressive running on the base paths gave the Lynx an additional four runs, pushing them to a five-point advantage, 5-0.
 
The Lynx refused to let off the gas in the third. A first-batter walk triggered a series of hits, scoring Rachel Pewitt off a single by Danielle Smith and tacking on another two runs to the tally off a double by Amber Hunt. The three-run inning gave Rhodes a 6-0 cushion before tacking on their final run in the bottom of the fourth. The Pioneers concluded game one with two strikeouts and a pop up in the top of the fifth, falling 7-0 in their first outing.
 
In game two, Transylvania found their wheels, as sophomore Jamie Lutes took the mound for the first time recording five strikeouts in six innings of work, while giving up six earned runs and walking one. The Pioneers' offense saw life, recording a combined 10 hits and driving in five in the 7-5 loss to the Lynx.
 
The Lynx made their mark early in the first, advancing Parker on a wild pitch and steal, while walking Pewitt, and snagging a steal to second. A single by Courtney Williams drove home her teammates, giving the Lynx a two-run advantage at the end of the first inning.
 
Lutes cracked a solo blast in the second, making it 2-1 and recording the team's first home run of the season. The Lynx' bats got hot in the bottom of the second, as the Pioneers gave up five hits and three runs to make it a 5-1 ballgame. Rhodes tacked on another run in the fourth, as Hunt singled, stole second, and was driven in on an error at third base, pushing the Lynx advantage to 6-1.
 
Two back-to-back walks by Rhodes put Lutes, replaced by freshman Jamie Vescio, and freshman Krista DeBurger on base in the top of the fifth, shifting the momentum in the Pioneers' favor. A double by senior Chelsea Meiners notched two RBIs, scoring Vescio and DeBurger to bring the Pioneers within three, 6-3.
 
Rhodes didn't let up, extending their lead by another run off the bat of Pewitt who nailed a home run on her first appearance of the fifth inning for a 7-3 lead.
 
With one inning remaining, the Pioneers rallied. A single by junior Cassie Hamilton drove in Meiners from third, while a single by junior Elizabeth Young notched an RBI off a scoring freshman Maddy Rodabaugh. Down 7-5, the pressure was on Lutes to continue the inning with two outs, but the rally fell short as she struck out looking.
 
Transylvania will matchup with Rhodes for a second double-header on Sunday, playing at 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. on the road. The Pioneers will head back to Lexington for their home opener on March 1-2, hosting Marietta and Wittenberg.