Brooms and bats were out with Texas A&M softball’s sweep of South Carolina in a 2-1 Game 3 on Sunday, March 10 as senior 1B Trinity Cannon contributed once again to the scoreline with her two RBI triple.
“It’s exciting,” graduate RHP Brooke Vestal said. “I mean pitchers had a great weekend, defense had a great weekend. I think to do well you have to play two parts of the game — at least — really well, sometimes three. This weekend we played two parts really well. We played defense well, and we pitched well. Maybe next weekend we play defense well and we hit well.”
Sliding on her knees to get the first out of the game off a foul ball was senior C Julia Cottrill. Vestal struck out her first batter of the game swinging to go into the bottom of the first for the Aggies.
“I wanted Brooke [Vestal] honestly to build upon yesterday,” coach Trisha Ford said. “I felt like we started to see the Brooke Vestal that I know, and I wanted to give her another shot out there.”
Vestal’s first pitch of the game was a strike, but the Gamecocks’ starter sophomore RHP Jori Heard threw four straight balls to walk junior SS Koko Wooley. Advancing to second, Wooley ran on a wild pitch then advanced to third on Cannon’s fly out. Cottrill was walked by Heard, but nothing came of the two runners on for the Maroon and White.
Throughout the second and third, Vestal struck out three batters swinging. The game was scoreless going into the bottom of the third. Sophomore 3B Kennedy Powell bunted to make it to first. On Wooley’s bunt, Powell advanced to second and attempted to make it to third but ran back to second without getting tagged out in the throwdown. Heard exited in the third, and freshman RHP Sage Mardjetko took her place in the circle.
An ice-breaker triple to the right-field wall by Cannon ran in Powell and senior CF Jaz Hill. The Aggies went into the fourth up 2-0. Powell returned to fielding and caught a line out while on her toes leaning backwards.
“[Cannon] going up and getting a triple to bring in two that always makes you take a deep breath and go ‘yeah, my teams got me,’” Vestal said.
Right place, right time 😅@Kennedyjp_1 | #GigEm pic.twitter.com/40Y0OocfSb
— Texas A&M Softball (@AggieSoftball) March 10, 2024
A single by junior RF Allie Enright was the extent of the Aggie offense in the fourth. In the top of the fifth, Vestal hit a batter to give her first walk of the day, but South Carolina still had yet to score a run. The bottom of the sixth rolled around and the scoreline stayed 2-0 with A&M up to bat.
Cannon returned to the batter’s box and was walked by Mardjetko. Freshman PR Hailey Golden stepped in for Cannon on first, and ‘Ball 7’ chants rang throughout Davis Diamond. Aggie fans cheered as Mardjetko threw a strike after seven consecutive balls. Sophomore DH Aiyana Coleman was walked on a full count with Golden on second and one out on the board. Junior PR Kramer Eschete came in for Coleman and advanced to second with Golden to third on sophomore LF Keely Williams’ ground out. Enright struck out swinging, and the top of the seventh was upon Davis.
Let me introduce ya to the 12th Man. pic.twitter.com/defKNXmpdc
— Texas A&M Softball (@AggieSoftball) March 10, 2024
South Carolina’s senior DP Kianna Jones tripled off of Vestal, and a fielding error by Enright secured her run. A standing ovation from the Aggie fans as Vestal exited the circle for junior LHP Emiley Kennedy. From down 3-0 on the pitch count to pulling it full, Kennedy ended up walking senior 1B Aniyah Black. Off a single, Jones ran in to cut into A&M’s lead, 2-1.
Ford challenged the play where sophomore PR Kyye Ricks, who was running for Black, left second early on a sacrifice groundout by senior 3B Zoe Laneaux, but the call stood.
The crowd stood for the final play of the game where junior C Giulia Desiderio flied out to Enright for an easy catch.
“The 12th Man was awesome,” Ford said. “I thought they were very active during the game, and they were a factor in the game.”
Aggie softball will travel to play Mississippi State in a weekend series starting on Friday, March 15 at 4 p.m.
