No. 23 Texas A&M Falls 5-1 in Midweek Contest to No. 2 Oregon

Wednesday, February 18

College Station

4:30 PM

Texas A&M

7-4

Oregon

10-0

Oregon

Texas A&M

Feb 18, 2015 | Softball

Box Score

By: Texas A&M Athletics

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The No. 22/23 Texas A&M softball team (7-4) dropped a 5-1 contest to the No. 2 ranked Oregon Ducks on Wednesday.

Both teams stranded two runners in the first inning with the score staying at 0-0. The Aggies started with a leadoff walk from senior Brittany Clopton, followed by the first of four A&M hits on a single to center field by freshman Tori Vidales.

Oregon took the first lead of the game with a solo shot home run over the right field wall. The Aggie defense shut down any other Oregon advances, with the left side of the field getting a workout on a line drive and pop up to third baseman Vidales and a fly ball to Clopton.

Sophomore Reagan Boenker opened the inning by taking her base after being hit by a pitch and a sacrifice bunt from freshman Kristen Cuyos put Boenker in scoring position at second base. Freshman Erica Russell joined Boenker on the bags after being walked on a full count but two quick outs left both runners stranded.

Oregon recorded another hit on a double to the center field wall but weren't able to capitalize in the top of the third inning. A blazing hit over the center field wall from Vidales marked the Aggies' only run of the game, equalizing the score at 1-1.

The Ducks opened the fourth with a single up the middle. Sophomore April Ryan made a diving catch at second base and turned the double play with a quick throw to Boenker at first. A pop up to second base ended the inning but the Aggies were unable to act on their new found momentum, with a single from Clopton as the sole hit of the bottom of the fourth.

The tie was broken in the fifth when an RBI single to left field brought an Oregon runner across home plate. Fox and the Aggie defense got out of a tight spot with the bases loaded after Clopton got underneath a fly ball to deep left field.

Junior Breanna Dozier notched the only Aggie hit of the fifth inning, with a single to center field.

A single hit from the Ducks in the top of the sixth led to a stranded runner on third base and in scoring position. The Aggies went down 1-2-3 to send the game into the final inning at 2-1 and Oregon leading.

The Ducks opened the gap with a four run inning, scoring on two RBI singles and two fielder's choice plays. A&M was unable to counter, with Clopton, Ryan and Vidales going down for a final score of 5-1.

Coach Evans Postgame Sound
“We had our opportunities and I thought our kids competed and got themselves on base. The difference in the game was Oregon had some timely hitting and that's how they were able to move away from us.”

Let's Hear a Hullabaloo…
… for the fourth homerun. Freshman Tori Vidales hit her fourth homerun of her young career, against Oregon's All-American pitcher. Vidales leads the team in homers, hits and RBIs, with four, 11 and 10, respectively.

Coach Evans on Vidales:
“She's such a great player, she does such a great job and has great instincts. I love the way she competes at the plate. She comes every day to play and isn't intimidated by anybody. She shouldn' be, she's too good for that. I'm really proud of the way the kid plays and every time she's up, you know something good is going to happen. That's who she is to our ball club. She'll be doing great things for the next four years.”

Up Next
The Aggies head back to the West Coast for the 2015 Mary Nutter Classic in Cathedral City, California. Follow along with live stats at 12thMan.com and @AggieSoftball on Twitter for all the hits, pitches and everything in between during the 2015 softball season.