The No. 5 Texas A&M softball team opened SEC play this weekend as they took on the Mississippi State Bulldogs at the Aggie Softball Complex. The Aggies captured the series victory two games to one and improved to 21-2 (2-1 SEC), as the Bulldogs fall to 20-5 (1-2 SEC).
In game one, the Bulldogs knocked off the Aggies 5-2 behind sophomore starting pitcher Regan Green’s dominant performance. Green tossed six innings and only gave up four hits and one earned run as she walked one and struck out two. Junior first baseman Tori Vidales led the Aggies as she went 2-3 with a solo home run, and sophomore third baseman Riley Sartain went 1-3 with a run scored.
In game two, The Aggies defeated the Bulldogs 5-1. The game started Saturday afternoon and was played in steady rainfall as the umpiring crew decided to suspend the game in the middle of the fifth until Sunday morning before game three of the series. Leading A&M was Riley Sartain, sophomore second baseman Kaitlyn Alderink, and junior starting pitcher Trinity Harrington. Sartain went 2-3 with a run scored and Alderink went 1-4 with a 2 RBI single. Harrington tossed five innings, giving up just two hits and one earned run while striking out six.
In game 3, the Aggies took the rubber match and the series with a 3-1 win. A&M was led by junior pitcher Lexi Smith and freshman right fielder Sarah Hudek. Smith went the distance, tossing 7 innings and giving up just three hits and no earned runs, while striking out three. Hudek went 1-3 with a two-run home run in the 3rd inning that ultimately gave the Aggies the win.
“I’m so proud of that kid,” head coach Jo Evans said. “[Smith] went out in the first inning and threw a bunch of strikes early. I thought she just got tougher and tougher. She threw a gem today. Their righties didn’t hit the ball against her really at all and she found ways to get out.”
The Aggie Softball Complex was packed with fans this weekend, as the Aggies got over 3000 people over the three games to come out and support them in their conference opening series, including over 1100 in both the Saturday rainy game and the Sunday cold game.
“I just appreciate them so much,” Evans said. “Shout out to them, it means so much to us. We’re playing as hard as we can play and to have the crowd in it and loud is great. When something good happened, they were all over it. When they didn’t get a call they wanted, they were all over it. That’s called home field advantage and it’s really fun to play in front of our Aggie fans.”
The Aggies will be back in action on Tuesday as they travel to Memphis to take on the Memphis Tigers at the Tigers Softball Complex. First pitch is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
