FARMVILLE – The Fuqua School softball team split a double header with Amelia Academy on Thursday afternoon at Al Smith Field.

The Falcons lost the first of the two scheduled five inning contests 6-3 (in seven innings) and won the second 11-6.

“We played well for the better part of both games,” said FS head coach Robert Schmidt. “Good enough to win both, but we had one error at the wrong time that let them back into the game, and they took full advantage of it.”

Fuqua took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning. Taylor Schmidt reached base and scored on a triple by Macie Ware.

That could have been enough for a five inning game, but Amelia was able to tie the game at 1-1 when Autumn Martin singled, advanced to second and scored when a throwback to the pitcher went into the outfield.

After a scoreless fifth inning, Amelia Academy scored two in the top of the sixth. Brett Gough scored on a Martin single, and Martin came home on a single by Lexi Sollars.

Fuqua tied the game on an Amelia Academy defensive error in the bottom of the sixth. Katie Haney reached base after striking out on a passed ball. She scored on a Jordan Pepper single, and Pepper scored on a double by Mary Grace Amos.

Amelia Academy added three more in the top of the seventh. Rickylyn Cundiff reached on a walk and moved to third on a single by Gough. Both scored on a triple by Meghan Flippin and a sacrifice fly by Samantha Sirles scored Flippin.

A one out singe by Lindsey Kunath was all the Falcons could get in the bottom of the seventh, but it did serve as a warm-up for the second game.

Fuqua scored four in the top of the first and six more in the top of the second to take a commanding lead early on in the second game of the double header (Fuqua was playing as the visiting team in the nightcap).

Jaru Davis, Taylor Frink and Schmidt led off the game with three consecutive walks, and after an out on a pop fly to third, Pepper knocked in the first run on the fourth free pass issued in the inning.

A single by Mary Grace Amos scored Ware and Schmidt, and Pepper later scored on a wild pitch.

Amelia Academy scored one run in the bottom of the first. Cundiff led off the inning with a triple and later scored on a single by Sirles.

Fuqua pretty much put the game out of reach in the top of the second. Kunath tripled to lead off the inning and came home on a single by Davis, before Fuqua hit three straight doubles by Ware, Schmidt and Haney. A triple by Amos cleared the bases, and she came home to score the sixth run of the inning when Lydia Painter reached on an error.

Amelia Academy scored two runs in the bottom of the second. Sollars singled and scored on a double by Chelsea Dinsmore. Dinsmore scored on a bunt single by Kristen Allen.

AA scored another run in the bottom of the third to close the deficit to 10-4. Flippin singled and scored on a sacrifice by Sollars.

Fuqua added an insurance run in the top of the fifth. Davis singled and scored on a Ware single to give FS an 11-4 lead.

The Patriots scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Gough and Flippin scored on a single by Martin, but a head's up double play by the Fuqua defense with two on and no out ended any chance for a late rally by the Patriots.

“We played with a lot of hustle today,” said Schmidt, “which was a big difference than how we played earlier in the week. We hit the ball much better, especially in the second game, and in these short games, you just can't get behind.”

“You can't give a team ten runs and expect to come back to make a game of it,” said AA head coach Frank Shanaberger. “Especially when you are playing a five inning game. We leave here with a split, and be happy with that. We got lucky in that first game, but I was glad to see that when we got that opportunity, we were able to take advantage of it.”

Fuqua was scheduled to host Blessed Sacrament-Huguenot on Tuesday, and will host Brunswick Academy on Thursday afternoon.