RECAP: Softball wins two more in Melissa to sweep tournament
Softball finished up its Tracy Beard College Classic Saturday with two wins on the day to extend its win streak to four games. Junior left-handed pitcher Ashley Peters picked up her fourth win and a save on the day.
North Texas (7-2) started the day off with a close 6-5 victory over the University of Nevada (1-8) followed by a 3-1 victory over Abilene Christian University (5-5). The two wins gave the Mean Green a sweep of the tournament after taking two losses last week, including a shutout loss to McNeese State University.
“Good weekend anytime you go 4-0, it’s good no matter who you play, Division I softball is tough,” head coach Rodney DeLong said.
Game 2: Abilene Christian 1, North Texas 3
Peters started against Abilene Christian in the Mean Green’s second game of the day. The lefty threw a complete game, struck out seven and surrendered one unearned run. Graduate right-hander Sidney Holman-Mansell went six innings in the circle for the Wildcats, giving up three runs (two earned) and losing her third game of the season.
North Texas struck first in the bottom of the first inning with an RBI double off the bat of sophomore first baseman Kailey Gamble. The Mean Green struck again in the third inning, taking a 3-0 lead on senior third baseman Tayla Evans’ second home run of the season.
Neither team scored in the fourth or fifth innings as Holman-Mansell and Peters took control of the game. In the sixth inning, however, the Wildcats ended the shutout by way of error as sophomore second baseman Mikayla Smith could not corral a grounder by sophomore Wildcats catcher Avery Miloch.
Peters closed out the contest with her seventh strikeout of the night and two groundouts. The Purdue University transfer now has a team-leading four wins on the season.
“I’m really happy with today’s performance, my team had my back behind me stringing hits together, so I felt calm out there [in the circle],” Peters said. “Scoring in the first inning really gave us a big impact for the rest of the game.”
Game 1: Nevada 5, North Texas 6
Freshman right-handed pitcher Skylar Savage started for North Texas in Friday’s first game. The 6-foot-2 righty pitched four innings, giving up two runs and striking out five. Nevada started freshman right-handed pitcher Ellie Garcia who pitched 4.1 innings, surrendering five earned runs and three walks while striking out four.
The Mean Green took a 2-0 lead on a home run to center by sophomore right fielder Molly Rainey and run by way of a passed ball for Smith, both in the second inning. Nevada freshman shortstop Aaliyah Jenkins quickly cut the deficit in half with a solo home run in the top of the third.
North Texas extended its lead to 3-1 following an RBI groundout by sophomore outfielder Kalei Christensen in the bottom of the third. The top of the fourth was Savage’s last inning as the righty gave up a run on a double by freshman catcher Alycia Coats.
Sophomore right-hander Jaycee Cook relieved Savage in the fifth, surrendering three hits, three runs (two earned) and recording a single out in the inning before being relieved by sophomore lefty Janie Worthington. The second-year pitcher then got out of the inning without allowing more runs across the plate.
The Mean Green rallied in the bottom of the fifth, tying the game with two hits, two walks and a sacrifice fly. Evans pinch-hit in the bottom of the sixth with the game tied at five, pushing a home run over the center field wall to give the Mean Green the lead.
“We’ve been hitting the ball and we’re getting better about being consistent about it,” Evans said. “We really wanted to make sure that we killed the weekend.”
Peters checked in for the seventh, retiring the Wolfpack in order to record her first save of the season. Savage scored a no-decision in the contest.
North Texas travels south to Austin, Texas, next Wednesday to take on No. 11 the University of Texas before coming home for the first time for the North Texas Invitational next weekend.
“It’s a great opportunity [to play Texas],” DeLong said. “Going to play against a great team in a good environment, so hopefully we’ll go out there and play our best.”
Image source Mean Green Sports
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