April 02, 2006
Amanda Scarborough was 2-for-4 with two RBI on a double and home run, and scored two runs to help the No. 15 Texas A&M softball team split the two-game series with a 7-5 win over Texas Tech on Sunday at Rocky Johnson Field.
A&M improved to 4-1 in Big 12 play and 25-10 overall. The loss dropped the Red Raiders to 2-4 in the conference and 13-23 on the season.
?I?â„¢m so excited about the way we swung the bats,? commented A&M head coach Jo Evans. ?We got ourselves on base early on and made some critical base-running mistakes. I?â„¢m just happy that they didn?â„¢t cost us the game. I?â„¢m excited that we kept fighting and battling.?
With two outs and no one on base, Robyn Wike hit her second home run of the season, in the bottom of the second, to put the Red Raiders on top 1-0.
The Aggies posted two runs in the top of the fourth. Starting pitcher Megan Gibson started the inning off with a single into center field. Gibson then stole her fourth base of the season to move into scoring position. First baseman Amanda Scarborough hit a double into left center field to score Gibson. The RBI was Scarborough?â„¢s 13th of the season. With the bases loaded and no outs relief pitcher, Erin Crawford threw a wild pitch that allowed Scarborough to score from third, giving the Aggies a 2-1 lead going into the bottom half of the inning.
A&M extended its lead to five runs in the top of the sixth. Scarborough started the scoring by belting her third home run of the year. Holly Ridley singled up the middle and advanced to second on an error by the center fielder. Rocky Spencer followed suit with a single of her own, scoring Ridley from second. Patti Wunderlich advanced Spencer to third. Joy Davis singled, scoring Spencer. Jamie Hinshaw singled to right field to drive-in Davis, before being caught stealing.
Texas Tech cut the Aggie lead to two in the bottom of the sixth. The Red Raiders scored three runs on a home run by Montana Patin, her third of the season, a single by Whitney Riley, a double by Brandy Moulin and another single by Wike.
A run in the seventh for A&M sealed the win. McDonald reached on a walk to start things off. Gibson doubled to left field to drive in McDonald and her team leading 24th RBI of the season. The run extended A&M?â„¢s lead 7-5.
?It?â„¢s nice to see us out there hitting the ball really hard,? Evans noted. ?It was a good sign that we made some adjustments at the plate. To put 11 hits on the board is a big deal for our club right now.?
Gibson earned the win for A&M in the circle, as she threw five and a third, giving up four runs on five hits. Gibson walked one and struck out four, improving her record to 13-3 on the season.
Lisa Gorzycki earned her third save of the season. She worked an inning and two thirds, allowing one run to score on three hits. Gorzycki tallied three strike outs.
?Lisa came in and struggled a little bit to throw strikes,? said Evans. ?But I love Lisa?â„¢s intensity and her attitude. She?â„¢s like hey I?â„¢m not going to let that get me down. I?â„¢m going to stay in this game and help my team win a ballgame.?
Julie Hauck (5-9) was tabbed with the loss for Tech. She worked three complete, giving up two runs on five hits.
Scarborough was named State Farm Player of the Day with the two RBI on two hits.
The Aggies will travel to Austin to face the No. 1 Texas Longhorns in the State Farm Lonestar Showdown on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Live audio and stats for the game will be available at AggieAthletics.com.