Texas A&M softball headed down to Tallahassee, Florida to compete in the JoAnne Graf Classic on Friday, Feb. 21. On the first day, the Aggies faced Florida A&M in a doubleheader and dominated 11-2 and 12-1, respectively.

A rocky start from Florida A&M’s sophomore pitcher Zoryana Hughes allowed the Aggies to get up early, after four straight walks to start the game. Battling a full count with the bases loaded, junior second baseman Amari Harper drew another walk, sending junior third baseman Kennedy Powell home to give the Aggies an early 1-0 lead. 

The Maroon and White were able to tack on another run due to a sacrifice fly from senior center fielder Allie Enright, sending graduate designated player Mac Barbara through home plate.

Freshman right-handed pitcher Sydney Lessentine got her third start of the season for the Aggies and dominated through seven innings. She struck out the side swinging in the bottom of the first, giving the Rattlers a short-lived first inning. 

A pair of back-to-back walks allowed the Maroon and White to have two men on with no outs, heading back toward the top of the lineup. Hughes fought Powell in a tough at-bat before Powell struck out swinging, allowing Hughes to earn her first strikeout of the game. 

A base hit from Barbara loaded the bases, sending sophomore first baseman Mya Perez to the plate. Perez reached on a fielder’s choice as junior catcher Gracyn Coleman scored, growing the lead for A&M. With the bases loaded again, Hughes faced the Southeastern Conference-All Defensive Team selection Enright, but she forced a pop-up, stranding three Aggies on base.

Back on defense, Lessentine continued to prove her dominance on the mound after throwing two more strikeouts, one swinging and one looking, before walking junior utility player Keeleigh Spooner, giving the Rattlers their first base runner. 

Freshman sensation Lessentine quickly shook it off before striking out sophomore outfielder Delacia DeLeslin on a 1-2 count. Lessentine earned her eighth strikeout in the bottom of the third, leaving the Rattlers scoreless through three. 

After a couple of crucial mistakes from the Rattlers gave the Aggies two easy runs to put the Aggies up 6-0, the Rattlers were able to get a couple of runners on base due to a few defensive errors by the Aggies. Redshirt sophomore infielder Kayla Aldridge was hit by a pitch, sending her to first base before a wild pitch put freshman pinch-runner Ciara Maple in scoring position for the Rattlers. 

The Rattlers rallied despite being down two outs, as junior utility Amari Brown doubled to left field, driving in Maple and putting the Rattlers on the board. Another wild pitch from Lessentine sent Brown to third, putting her 60 feet away from another Florida A&M run. Surely enough, Spooner doubled to left field as Brown ran home, earning another, before Lessentine struck out DeLeslin swinging. 

The Maroon and White began to separate, as Perez homered to left center, earning her second home run this season and drawing in two insurance runs for the Aggies. Late in the fifth, Dement reached on an error, giving the Aggies an easy run as freshman OF Kelsey Mathis crossed home, her first run of her collegiate career. 

The Aggies finished the game with a homer to left-center from Dement, putting them up 11-2, before Lessentine once again struck out the side to end the game.

The energy and momentum from game one continued into game two as the Aggies posted 12 runs, the most they have had all season. 

A&M chose right-handed pitcher Grace Sparks to start the second half of the doubleheader. A lead-off double from Brown set the Rattlers up, as they went up 1-0 due to an RBI from freshman OF Jamison Townsend.

The Aggies quickly took the lead as Powell was hit by a pitch, stole second and ended up on third base, putting them in scoring position, before Harper hit a deep sacrifice fly and sent Powell to the plate. Two back-to-back errors from the Rattlers drew in two more runs for the Aggies as they went up 3-1. 

Florida A&M struggled offensively against this stellar Texas A&M defense, combined with an incredible offensive game. The Rattlers were quiet after their first run, as their only two base runners reached first on walks. 

The offense of the Maroon and White only continued to dominate, as Perez singled, sending Powell and Eschete home, giving the Aggies a 5-1 advantage. Mathis earned her first collegiate hit and stolen base as she put herself in scoring position to grow the lead even more. 

An error from the Rattlers sent Mathis home before freshman right-fielder Frankie Vrazel singled to left, earning her two RBIs as Powell and Eschete scored. 

The exclamation point of the third inning was a two-run home run from Perez over the left field wall, putting the Aggies up 10-1 against the Rattlers, one run away from a run rule. 

A lead-off double from Dement in the fourth put them within reach of victory throughout the opening day of the JoAnne Graf Classic. Junior 1B Kylei Griffin earned her first hit and RBI of the season, sending Dement home, before running home herself thanks to freshman OF Harley Vestal, who also got her first hit of the season. The Rattlers had no gas left as they posed three straight outs to end the game. 

The Aggies are now on a four-game win streak with a 12-1 record before heading into another doubleheader against No. 8 Florida State on Saturday, Feb. 22, at 2:00 and 4:30 p.m.