36 views
By MICHAEL WRIGHT
Sports Reporter
SAN MARCOS – The Texas State (9-9, 3-0) softball team started off conference play in grand fashion as they swept the Mavericks from UT Arlington (3-9, 0-3) at Bobcat Field Tuesday and Wednesday. All three games were close including two games going into extra innings. The Bobcats outscored the Mavericks by only 4 points while picking up the 3 wins.
Tuesday’s game was the Southland Conference opener for both teams. The `Cats got things started in the 2nd inning. Kristina Tello reached on an error that scored Ashton Peters with 2 outs. Ryan Kos was the next batter and she singled in Tello and Jill Kloesel to make the score 3-0. All three runs were unearned. The Mavericks picked up runs in the 5th and 6th innings to bring the score to 3-2. Elizabeth Dennis retired the side in order in the 7th to preserve the victory. She ended the night with 2.2 innings of work and one earned run allowed on three hits with two walks and a strike out. Katie Garnett (4-3) picked up the win for the Bobcats. She pitched 4.1 innings, did not give up a run, scattered three hits and three walks and had one strike out. Kos (1 for 2 with 2 RBI’s), Ali McCormack (2 for 3) and Ashton Peters (1 for 3 and a run) led the team offensively.
Score by Innings R H E
—————————————–
Score by Innings R H E
—————————————–
Texas-Arlington 000 520 20 9 11 1
Texas State 220 122 02 11 13 0
—————————————–
The 2nd game Wednesday night turned out just as exciting as the first. UTA started things off this time and scored a run on 2 hits and an error and left 3 runners on base in the first. The `Cats responded with a score of their own in the first when Kristina Tello scored on a Alex Newton single to tie the score at one. The Mavericks scored again in the 2nd to take the lead 2-1. The Bobcats then scored 4 big runs in their half of the 2nd. All the runs were scored with 2 outs on them. For the second game in a row, Ryan Kos drew a bases loaded walk to score Taylor Hall. Newton once again came up with the big knock with a 3 run triple to score Ryan Kos, Tello and Jill Kloesel. UTA scored 2 in the 4th and 1 more in the 5th to tie the game at 5 after 5 innings. The game went into extra innings with Ragan Blake taking control on the mound and pitching through the 9th inning only giving up 2 hits over those final 4 innings. Leah Boatright had her 2nd consecutive game winning hit when she laced a double to left center to score Tello and give the Bobcats the sweep with a 6-5 extra inning victory. Blake got her 2nd win of the series (3-6) giving up 1 earned run on 5 hits and striking out 5. Tello (2 for 5, 3 Runs), Kos (1 run, 1 RBI), Newton (4 for 5, 4 RBI’s), Boatright (1 for 4, 1 RBI) and Kloesel (1 for 3, 1 Run) provided the offensive sparks.
Score by Innings R H E
——————————
Texas-Arlington….. 110 210 000 – 5 12 1
Texas State……… 140 000 001 – 6 10 1
——————————
Blake (3-6) earned both wins giving up six earned runs in 11.1 innings. She also finished with 12 strikeouts while allowing 10 hits and walking five. Katie Garnett started game two and ended the day with five earned runs on nine hits with three strikeouts in 4.2 innings. Both game on Wednesday lasted over five hours.
Texas State will now host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in a three-game series that begins with a doubleheader on Saturday at 1 p.m.