After starting off the Judi Garman Classic with two wins on Feb. 29, No. 18 Texas A&M softball took on Weber State for the first of two games on Friday, March 1 in Fullerton, California at Anderson Family Field.
The first two innings left both teams scoreless, with both the Wildcats and Aggies struggling to find a hole in the defense.
In the third inning, sophomore SS Taegan Smith homered into left field to score the first run of the game for the Wildcats.
A&M wasn’t able to respond at the top of the fourth inning. However, Weber State extended its lead to two runs with its second homer, this time coming from junior 3B Abby Grundy.
At the top of the fifth, A&M finally got to work at the plate. A walk from junior RF Allie Enright sent her to first and she was able to take second off of a groundout from sophomore 3B Kennedy Powell. Another walk came from sophomore 2B Amari Harper, and, right after, senior CF Jazmine Hill doubled to right-center field to send home Harper and Enright to tie it at 2.
For the Wildcats in the fifth inning, a double from Smith and her second RBI of the night sent senior CF Mia Rushton home to take the lead at 3-2.
After an uneventful sixth inning, the seventh had the Aggies show more fight with one last chance to win the game. With two outs putting the Aggies against the wall, Powell singled to get the wheels turning for the Aggies. With Harper at bat, Powell was able to steal second.
No time was wasted for the Aggies as Harper singled to center field and advanced to second on the throw as Powell scored a run to tie the game, 3-3.
The Maroon and White’s defense held off the Wildcats’ attempts to win the game with a walk-off run as coach Trisha Ford subbed in junior LHP Emiley Kennedy, coming off 28 punchouts over her last two games.
With a strikeout from Kennedy and a fly ball caught by Hill, A&M forced an extra eighth inning.
A&M was at bat first and with Hill placed at second, A&M scored on the first pitch as senior 1B Trinity Cannon doubled into right-center field for Hill to run home to make the game 4-3. Ford elected to have freshman Scout Lovell pinch run for Cannon, with Lovell being able to advance to third off a single from senior SS Rylen Wiggins.
Wiggins was able to steal her second base of the game to put an Aggie at second and third, but they were left stranded.
A passed ball advanced Weber State sophomore PR Riley Whalen to third and another passed ball allowed Whalen to score as junior 1B Olivia Birkinshaw walked. Birkinshaw was able to advance to second from a bunt from Grundy and then advanced to third from a groundout from senior 2B Makayla Donahoo.
A single from junior RF Giannia Memoli sent Birkinshaw home to win it for the Wildcats and stun the Aggies with a final score of 5-4.
