Texas A&M
31-10
North Texas
14-22
Big Bats Blast #23 Aggies Past North Texas, 13-9
Apr 09, 2015 | Softball
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The No. 23 Texas A&M softball team (31-10, 7-5 SEC) had three different players hit homeruns en route to a 13-9 victory over North Texas.
Both teams put up two runs in the first, with North Texas scoring on back-to-back solo shots. Freshman Erica Russell was first on base for the Aggies, drawing a walk, and moved quickly into scoring position after the first of several illegal pitches from North Texas. Freshman Tori Vidales's first hit of the night came on a single to left field, putting runners on the corners for A&M. Another illegal pitch moved both runners forward, sending Russell in for the first run.
With Vidales on second, freshman Kristen Cuyos took a walk before an RBI single to right field from sophomore April Ryan sent Vidales and the tying run home.
Junior Katie Marks and the Aggie defense retired the Mean Green side in order to send the offense back out.
After two quick outs, Russell was walked for the second time in two innings to start the offense. Vidales smoked a hit past the North Texas short stop for a single, putting two runners on base for A&M. On an even 1-1 count, junior Cali Lanphear squared off and hit her sixth home run of the year out of the park, giving the Aggies a three run lead.
With A&M leading 5-2, both teams went three up, three down in the third inning. The Mean Green would even the game in the top of the fourth, scoring three runs on five hits off Marks.
The game didn't stay tied for long. Sophomore Reagan Boenker got on base with a leadoff single up the middle, drawing a pitching change from North Texas, and moved to into scoring position on second base thanks to a sacrifice bunt from senior Brittany Clopton. A wild pitch would send Boenker sprinting for third before Vidales went yard for the second Aggie homer of the night and a 7-5 lead.
Once regaining the lead, Texas A&M stayed ahead of the Mean Green the rest of the night, despite both teams hitting well. Senior Lauren Ainsley entered the circle to relieve Marks in the top of the fifth and allowed one hit but kept North Texas at bay.
The Aggies tacked on four more runs in the bottom of the fifth, all from behind two outs. Sophomore Celena Massey singled to left center for her first hit of the night, followed immediately by a single up the middle from Boenker. With two runners on, freshman Erin Houthoofd came on to pinch hit and drew a walk.
With the bases loaded, Russell hit a laser up the middle to send home the first run and keep the bags full. Vidales, who would go 4-for-4 on the night, connected for the final time with a single to left center field, scratching two runs across the plate. An RBI single through the left side from Lanphear scored the final run of the inning and put the Aggies up 11-5.
The Mean Green scored two more in the top of the sixth on a two-run homer and narrowed the gap to four runs.
In their final at bat, the Aggies added two final runs to bring their total to 13 on the night. Ryan led off with a walk and moved to second on a wild pitch. Junior designated player Breanna Dozier crushed a ball over the center field wall for her sixth home run of the season to score both runners.
North Texas added two more to its total in the visitor portion of the final inning on a home run and an RBI double before senior pitcher Rachel Fox came on to close out the game. On her first pitch thrown, Massey made a great play behind the plate and made a quick throw to Cuyos covering second to catch the runner stealing for the final out and a 13-9 Aggie win.
Coach Evans Post Game Sound
“I thought we did a good job competing at the plate. I thought we did a really nice job in two-out situations and our two-strike hitting was good too. It was nice to see Erica Russell get up there in a key situation and get a big RBI, give us a chance to see Tori Vidales again. It was good to see Breanna Dozier hit the long ball. I thought Reagan Boenker really competed at the plate with her hits. It was nice to see us hit through the lineup and when our kids didn't hit, they drew walks. It was good that the kids answered back and didn't get on their heels.”
Let's Hear a Hullabaloo
…for doing what you do. Freshman Tori Vidales had a perfect night at the plate, going 4-for-4 with four RBIs, three runs and her 12th homer of the season. Vidales was equally impressive on defense, adding five put outs and two assists in another impressive outing for the freshman. Gig 'em, Tori!
Coach Evans on Fox:
“It's great to see her have a game like that. She's just such a good hitter. She's particularly great with two strikes and she's a tough out. When pitchers get ahead of her she finds a way to come back and hit home runs. She hits tough balls in the gap. Just a great job by a great hitter. She's very, very good and I expect that we'll see this kind of nights from her for the next four years.”
Up Next
The Aggies return to conference play, hosting No. 7 Auburn in a weekend series with first pitch coming Friday at 6:35 p.m. 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.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Marks, Katie (11-1)
L: GARCIA, Monique (2-10)
S: Fox, Rachel (3)
Batting:
2B: BARKER, Sarah 2
3B: SCHOBLOCHER, Taylor 1
HR: LAND, Mallory 1 ; SCHOBLOCHER, Taylor 1 ; STRUNK, Kat 1 ; WILLIAMS, Karly 1
RBI: LAND, Mallory 1 ; SCHOBLOCHER, Taylor 1 ; STRUNK, Kat 2 ; BARKER, Sarah 1 ; SCHKADE, Kelli 1 ; WILLIAMS, Karly 3
Base Running:
RUNS: LAND, Mallory 1 ; SCHOBLOCHER, Taylor 2 ; STRUNK, Kat 3 ; BARKER, Sarah 1 ; SCHKADE, Kelli 1 ; WILLIAMS, Karly 1
CS: SCHKADE, Kelli 1
Batting:
HR: Vidales, Tori 1 ; Lanphear, Cali 1 ; Dozier, Breanna 1
RBI: Russell, Erica 1 ; Vidales, Tori 4 ; Lanphear, Cali 4 ; Ryan, April 1 ; Dozier, Breanna 2
SH: Clopton, Brittany 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Clopton, Brittany 1 ; Russell, Erica 3 ; Vidales, Tori 3 ; Lanphear, Cali 1 ; Ryan, April 1 ; Dozier, Breanna 1 ; Massey, Celena 1 ; Boenker, Reagan 2
SB: Lanphear, Cali 1
