LONGVIEW, Texas - Despite losing by a final score of 5-1 to open up a three-game home series against Sul Ross State, the LeTourneau University softball team would respond with a 10-2, six-inning win to earn a doubleheader split at the LETU Softball Field on Monday, March 12th.
LETU is now 4-9 overall and 3-8 in the American Southwest Conference while the Lobos picked up their ninth win of the year and are now 9-6 overall and 7-4 in the ASC.
Game One
SRSU would use the long ball to open up a lead that they would never relinquish, taking a 1-0 lead on a solo home run in the top of the second while adding solo runs in the third and fifth innings before tacking on two more in the top of the sixth with a second long ball to left field. LeTourneau would be limited to just seven hits in the game and stranded five runners on base, scoring their only run of the contest in the bottom of the seventh on a passed ball.
A majority of the YellowJacket offensive production would come from three players, with
Ethel Warren,
Shelby Barrick, and
Kelsi Coleman all collecting two hits in the ball game.
Jacie Gilbert would record the only other LETU hit, with a Warren double winding up as the only extra-base hit of the series opener for LeTourneau.
Junior
Faith Genoway took the pitching loss after allowing four runs on seven hits in five innings of work, striking out four on 87 total pitches.
Ashley Burdine would throw the final two innings, allowing one run on two hits.
Game Two
The bats came alive in game two for the YellowJackets, wasting no time to jump out to a quick lead while scoring at least one run in every inning played. Sul Ross would go down in order to open up game two, before seeing LETU score five runs on two hits and three errors while also taking advantage of two walks. A
Taylor MacKenzie sacrifice fly would give LeTourneau their first lead of the game at 1-0, and see
Katelyn Trombley make the score 2-0 in favor of the YellowJackets with an RBI single. A throwing error by SRSU would allow another run to score and make it 3-0 in favor of LETU, before seeing
Amber Fillbrandt deliver a two-RBI double to cap off the five-run inning.
Sul Ross managed to push across one run in the top of the second, but saw
Ashlin Roach give LeTourneau a 6-1 lead with one out in the bottom of the second after an RBI single to score MacKenzie. A seventh run would come home in the bottom of the third with a Warren sacrifice fly to score
Hana Bonner, as the score would be come 8-1 in the bottom of the fourth after a Mackenzie solo home run to put LETU in full control of the game.
The Lobos kept the YellowJackets from ending the game in the fifth, adding one run on two hits to cut the lead to 8-2, but would see LeTourneau get the run back in their half of the fifth while still having two runners on and just one out. LETU would be unable to capitalize however, seeing a fly out and fielder's choice end the inning and force a sixth-inning of play to take place.
LeTourneau would ensure that the game would end early after stranding two Lobo runners in the top of the sixth, using a leadoff walk to put the game-ending run aboard with no outs. A fielder's choice would keep a runner at first with one out and be followed up by a second walk, bringing the Gilbert to the plate. The freshman would deliver with a double to left center field, scoring pinch runner
Josie Mexquitic to give the YellowJackets their second walk-off win at home in four days.
A balanced effort saw nine different players for LETU collect a hit in the game, with Gilbert going two-for-four with one RBI. Fillbrandt and MacKenzie led all players in the game with two runs batted in each, with MacKenzie also drawing two walks.
Sophomore
Julie Martinez earned her first win of the year to improve to 1-2 overall in the circle after going 4.2 innings and allowing two runs on five hits while also striking out five of the 24 batters she faced. Burdine would make her second appearance of the evening, tossing the final one and one third innings and allowing just two hits.
LeTourneau will go for their first ASC series win of the year tomorrow morning, taking on the Lobos in the rubber match of their three-game series at the LETU Softball Field at 10 a.m.
