GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 8 University of North Georgia (UNG) softball team scored a record 26 runs in the second game of a doubleheader sweep on the road at No. 25 Tusculum on Wednesday.

The Nighthawks (29-8, 10-2 Peach Belt) fell 8-0 in five innings in the first matchup against the Pioneers (33-9, 11-7 South Atlantic).

In game two, UNG exploded with 14 runs in the first two innings as it went on to plate 26 in total. The mark sets a new NCAA Division-II era (2006) program record for runs scored in a game. The Nighthawks broke the previous mark of 23 runs which they totaled twice already this year in wins over Lake Erie and USC Aiken.

UNG will now return home for a three-game Peach Belt Conference series against Georgia College. First pitch in game one on Friday, April 4 is set for 5 p.m.

Game 1: Pioneers def. Nighthawks, 8-0 (5 Inn.)
Tusculum jumped out to an early lead with three runs in the first inning in game one and never relinquished the advantage in the game.

A solo home run and two RBI singles in the second inning provided six runs of support to the Pioneer starting pitcher Megan Ackerman who threw five complete innings with only four hits allowed. Ackerman did not walk any batters and struck out three in the win.

An RBI single in the fourth inning made it 7-0 before a two-out RBI single in the fifth ultimately ended the game via the eight-run rule.

Game 2: Nighthawks def. Pioneers, 26-1 (5 Inn.)
While UNG struggled offensively in game one, game two was a completely different story.

Senior shortstop Rylie Moody made sure of that when she blasted a grand slam over the wall in the left center field to give the Nighthawks an early 4-0 lead in the first inning. The deep shot was Moody's eighth of the season. Four UNG hitters now have seven or more home runs this season. 

Tusculum scored its lone run in the game in the bottom of the first on a throwing error during an attempted steal of third base. 

The Nighthawks built on their lead in the second inning, however. 

Redshirt sophomore outfielder Tagen Levao-Maisonet pounced on a 2-1 pitch to lead off the inning with a solo home run.

With the bases loaded and nobody out in the frame, junior outfielder Natalie Ray then made it 8-1 with a bases-clearing double to left center.

Sophomore utility player Ava Lunsford added a run with an RBI single before a throwing error from the shortstop position allowed two more UNG runners, including Lunsford, to come home.

After having batted around the lineup before recording two outs, sophomore third baseman Journey Roberts stepped to the plate after already singling earlier in the inning.

This time she launched the first home run of her collegiate career. The three-run blast to right center made it 14-1 in the game and capped off a 10-run inning for the Nighthawks.

UNG added another two runs in the third thanks to a two-run single from Levao-Maisonet who had recorded three hits and three RBI in all three at bats in the game thus far.

Levao-Maisonet was not the only Nighthawk hitter with multiple RBI in the game. Moody added her fifth and sixth RBI in the top of the fourth inning with a one-out double to make it 19-1.

Two more runs came across in the frame thanks to RBI singles from junior first baseman Marycille Brumby and Roberts.

Having already recorded its third 20-run game of the season by the fifth inning, UNG was not satisfied. 

After a Pioneer miscue allowed two more runs to score, Brumby added another RBI single to give her team a 24-1 advantage and break the program record for runs in a game. Levao-Maisonet then capped off a four-RBI day as she reached on a fielder's choice. 

Junior center fielder Sydnee Reaves plated the final runner of the day with an RBI single up the middle.

Six Nighthawk hitters (Ray, Moody, Lunsford, Brumby, Levao-Maisonet and Roberts) recorded multiple RBI in Wednesday's demolition of 25th-ranked Tusculum. Every UNG starter recorded a hit in the game and eight of the nine had multiple knocks on the day.

Moody topped the headlines as she went a perfect 4-for-4 and was a triple shy of the cycle with a double, a home run and six RBI. 

Roberts typically serves as the Nighthawk's starting third baseman and flex defender. Prior to Wednesday's matchup she had only recorded 18 at bats all season, primarily hitting in the second game of a twin billing.

However, Wednesday marked a milestone day for the second-year Nighthawk as she went 4-for-5 with two runs scored, four RBI and her first career homer. 

UNG pitchers Chloe Poss and Graci West completely shutdown the Pioneers in the second game. The junior Poss got the start and gave up one hit and unearned run in two complete innings while recording a pair of strikeouts. The freshman West followed and operated cleanly through three innings with seven scattered his, no walks and two strikeouts as well. West earned her fourth victory of the season in the game and is now 4-0 on the year.