ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. - The top-seeded Piedmont softball Lions ended fifth-seeded Meredith's run on a 9-0 five-inning finish in Friday's USA South tournament action. Ranked seventh in the latest national Division III softball poll, Piedmont outhit the Avenging Angels 9-1 to advance.

Piedmont will face the losing team in the #2 Huntingdon versus #6 Greensboro game eight.

In a game fraught with issues in the field, Meredith's Courtney Saunders drilled a double down the leftfield line in the bottom of the fourth inning to give the Angels a spark.

Piedmont scored four in the first frame on a pair of doubles, along with a pair of Avenging Angel miscues, and continued the run in the fourth to extend the lead to seven.

Saunders was left scoreless in the bottom of the frame, and the Lions added two more runs in the next inning to finish the game early.

Brittany Head earned her 16th win in the one-hitter, and Amanda Beirne capped off her career with an overall record of 21-16. She earned four runs on nine hits and struck out three.