LAKE CHARLES, La. – Playing the four-time defending Southland Conference Champions McNeese Cowgirls on their home turf to begin the conference tournament, the eighth seeded East Texas A&M University softball team dropped a 5-4 heartbreaker in eight innings to the top seeded Cowgirls on Thursday evening at the Cowgirl Diamond.
The Lions trailed 4-2 entering the sixth but tied the game and forced extra innings for the first time ever against the Cowgirls, who scored on a bases-loaded walk in the eighth inning to remain in the winner's bracket.
East Texas A&M now faces Lamar in an elimination game on Friday at 3 p.m. Lamar fell 4-0 to UIW on Thursday night. The winner of Friday's elimination game will face the loser of McNeese-UIW in another elimination game on Saturday.
After a 1-2-3 top of the first inning, the Cowgirls put their first runner on the base with a one-out double, but she was stranded at third as the Lions used three fly outs to keep it scoreless after one.
With an out in the top of the second,
Emmie Miehe (Cameron Park, Calif.) singled through the left side for the Lions' first base runner of the game.
Darby Hickey (Plano Senior) battled through a nine-pitch at-bat and drilled her first home run of the season, to left center and puts the Lions ahead.
DARBY HICKEY HOME RUN HIGHLIGHT
The Cowgirls got their first runs on the board in the bottom of the third. Kassidy Chance tripled down the left field line with an out and then Nyjah Fontenot walked and stole second. Jada Munoz followed with a three-run home run to left center.
After a Lion pitching change going into the bottom of the fourth, Sarah Allen was hit by the first pitch of the inning and pinch run for by Rylie Eyster. Brylie Fontenot sacrifice bunted Eyster to third as Fontenot reached on a Lion throwing error and then stole second.
Delaney Dunham drew a four-pitch walk to load the bases with no outs and after another Lion pitching change in the inning, Chance hit a sacrifice fly to left as Eyster came around to score. The Lions used a groundout, and an infield pop out to limit the Cowgirls to just one run in the inning.
In the top of the sixth,
Isabella Arzola (Chino, Calif.) led off the inning with a single up the middle and
Tatum Wright (Frisco – Centennial) followed with single off the left center wall as she was tagged out at second on the play, but Arzola reached third safely.
After a strikeout,
Aaliyah Wilcox (Covington, Ga.) tied the game with a two-run home run off the scoreboard, her second home run in four games in Lake Charles this season.
AALIYAH WILCOX HOME RUN HIGHLIGHT
McNeese threatened to walk it off in the bottom of the seventh as Samantha Mundine singled up the middle to lead off the inning and was pinch run for Adriana Mireles. Rylie Bouvier advanced Mireles to second on a sacrifice bunt.
Reese Reyna doubled to left and momentarily delivered the walk-off hit for the Cowgirls as Mireles was ruled safe at home on obstruction, but after review, the call was overturned, and Mireles was ruled out at home on a throw from left field by
Maddie Cason (Honey Grove).
RUNNER OUT AT HOME HIGHLIGHT
The Cowgirls had runners at first and second with two outs, but the Lions used a groundout to get out of the inning and head into extra innings.
After the Lions went down in order in the top of the eighth, Chance singled to second with an out in the bottom of the eighth as the Lions made a pitching due to an injury during Chance's at-bat.
Chance stole second and Nylie Fontenot walked to put two on with one out. Munoz reached on a fielder's choice as the Lions opted for the force out of Chance at third, but she was ruled safe, and the bases were loaded. Mundine drew a four-pitch walk to give the win to the Cowgirls.
The Lions had five hits in the game as Wright, Wilcox, Miehe, Hickey, and Arzola collected a hit each. For the Cowgirls, Chance and Mundine had two hits each to combine for four of the team's eight hits.
In the circle for the Lions,
Kate Houser (Lorena) threw 7.1 innings and was charged with three earned runs.
Maddie Muller (Frisco – Centennial) allowed the game-winning run and got the loss for the Lions.
For McNeese, Kadence Williams surrendered four earned runs in 5.2 innings, while Ryann Schexnayder threw 2.1 shutout innings and got the win. She did not allow a base runner in her relief appearance.
-ETAMU-
