Texas A&M softball’s seven-game winning streak came to an end after a 11-5 loss against No.12 Georgia in game one on Friday.
Georgia led 3-0 in the first inning with the help of a home run by freshman infielder Lacey Fincher. but the Aggies quickly picked up the pace with five runs in the third inning to take the lead.
A&M loaded the bases twice and scored on three-straight at bats, taking advantage of a hit-by-pitch, a walk and a fielding error by Georgia’s offense.
The Bulldogs reacted defensively with at least one run in the concluding four innings. Georgia tied the game with a senior infielder Alyssa DiCarlo double off the wall in right and regained the lead in the fifth on a bases-loaded infield single from freshman outfielder CJ Landrum.
However, Georgia’s biggest inning came in the sixth when freshman infielder Savana Sikes slammed a home run to left center that brought in four runs. This inning secured the win with one final run by utility player Tyler Armistead.
“You have to tip your hat to Georgia,” A&M head coach Jo Evans told 12thman.com. “They came out swinging and scored in almost every inning. They kept attacking, and it puts a lot of pressure on a team. “
Junior outfielder Kelbi Fortenberry led the Aggies offensively, going 2-for-4 and earned her 13th multi-hit game of the season.
Evans said despite the offensive success at the start of the game, scoring is something the team has to improve on.
“We have to be better offensively,” Evans told 12thman.com. “We scored five in the third and took advantage of a couple of errors that they made. We got some timely hitting. For us to be successful, we are going to have to capitalize in more than one inning. We have to take advantage with runners in scoring position.“
The Aggies and Bulldogs return to the Jack Turner Stadium on Saturday for game two of the series. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. and will be televised on the SEC Network.