After an opening day weekend where No. 25 Texas A&M softball went 4-0 in the Aggie Classic, the Maroon and White took their talents out west to face No. 14 Oregon in the first game of the Campbell/Cartier Classic at San Diego State University’s Softball Stadium on Friday, Feb. 16.
The Aggies faced their biggest competition of the season to date as the 4-3 Ducks were the defending champions of the Campbell/Cartier Classic. However, the Maroon and White beat their first ranked opponent this season in a 4-1 win over the Ducks to make the Aggies 5-0 to start the 2024 campaign.
Oregon quickly tried to capitalize on the Aggies’ scoreless first inning with junior LF Kai Luschar walking to first and then advancing to second almost immediately off a wild pitch from junior LHP Emily Kennedy.
A&M was in a tough spot as senior 2B KK Humphreys grounded out to second base, advancing Luschar to third. However, Kennedy and A&M’s defense came through to strike out fifth-year RF Ariel Carlson and then induce senior Alyssa Daniell to line out to close out the first inning.
Things picked up for the Maroon and White’s offense in the second inning. A single to center field from senior DH Trinity Cannon started things off, and senior CF Jazmine Hill followed that up with a single into right field to advance herself to first and Cannon to second. The Aggies remained calm as sophomore LF Keely Williams lined out and continued to push for a score as junior RF Allie Enright singled to load the bases.
A sacrifice fly from senior 2B Rylen Wiggins sent Cannon home for the first score of the game. Immediately after, sophomore 1B Amari Harper hit a single through the left side to plate Hill and make it 2-0 for A&M.
The Ducks couldn’t get anything going as Kennedy struck out three Ducks to close out the second inning.
The Ducks were able to find some success in the third as Luschar singled to left field. A single to short allowed Humphreys to advance to first and send Luschar to second, with Carlson loading the bases after being hit by a pitch.
The first score for the Ducks came right after, as Daniell singled to left field to advance everyone forward and send home Luschar to cut the Aggies’ lead in half at 2-1.
A critical sixth inning for both teams had the Aggies in a bad spot with two outs as Cannon and Hill grounded out, but Williams gave A&M new life.
Williams reached first on an error before stealing second base. A single to center field from Enright advanced Williams to third. Coach Trisha Ford sent in freshman PH Mya Perez for Wiggins, who walked, and sophomore PH Aiyana Coleman for Harper Coleman took care of the rest with a single through the left side that sent Williams and Enright home to make it 4-1.
The Ducks faced an uphill battle, and Daniell singled to center field to start it. A quick adjustment came as freshman OF Regan Legg pinch ran for Daniell. However, a walk for fifth-year C Emma Kauf wasn’t enough as Kennedy struck out Luschar and freshman PH Katie Flannery to end the sixth inning.
One last chance for Oregon in the seventh began with a quick strikeout of Sinicki. Luschar advanced to second off of a throwing error by Powell while Kennedy struck out Humphreys to leave the Ducks with one more chance, but Carlson popped out to end the game.
The Aggies face San Diego State on Friday at 5 p.m. After two more games on Saturday, A&M will face Oregon to close out the Campbell/Cartier classic on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 12 p.m.
