'Bachelor' star Clayton Echard apologizes to Elizabeth Corrigan for sending her home

After Monday's drama-filled episode of "The Bachelor, Clayton Echard is seeing things little more clearly, which prompted him to issue an apology to contestant Elizabeth Corrigan.

Corrigan, 32, faced accusations of bullying from fellow contestant Shanae Ankney, 29, and was ultimately sent home during this week's rose ceremony.

Echard, 28, took to his social media on Tuesday to apologize for the shocking elimination, writing, "I'm sorry, Elizabeth, for what you're going through. I wish I could have seen what was happening when I wasn't there."

"I obviously knew y'all weren't in a good place, but at the time, I thought it was solely, petty drama," he continued. "I would have sent Shanae home immediately for making fun of you for being neurodivergent, had I known."

Echard concluded, "Overall, the experience for me watching hasn't been fun, simply because I'm seeing all the damage that I caused. I really meant well, but my actions weren't always the best as I now can see the repercussions from my decisions. I can promise you I'm learning from the mistakes, though and am doing everything in my power to come out the other side a better man."

Also, on Tuesday, Corrigan took to social media to send a message to fans after her exit from the show.

"Being different doesn’t make you lesser, it makes your strong because you have to overcome," she wrote. "YOU get to decide how to react YOU get to decide in that moment who you will be. Choose integrity. Choose respect. Choose yourself."

While she hasn't yet responded to Echard's apology, Corrigan did reply to a tweet from the "Bachelor" star saying he is "looking forward to having an open and honest discussion" about everything that happened this season during the Women Tell All episode, adding that it is "important to hold people accountable, including myself." Her reply? "I'm ready."

"The Bachelor" returns Monday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.