PINEVILLE, LA- Searching for their fourth American Southwest Conference series win this season, the LeTourneau University softball team got the job done in extra inning fashion as they outlasted Louisiana College in game three by a score of 5-4 in eight-innings on Saturday, March 23rd.
With the win, the YellowJackets improve to 15-9 overall and 12-6 in American Southwest Conference play. The Wildcats fall to 17-8 on the season and 8-7 in conference action.
Louisiana College struck first by scoring one run in the bottom of the first to jump to an early 1-0 lead. The Wildcats would do the same in the second inning, loading the bases with one out before a hit batter brought a second run across. LETU escaped the bases-loaded jam as
Samantha Akers took things over in the circle for the YellowJackets to retire the next two batters.
The score remained in favor of the Wildcats until the top of the fourth when
Taylor Nichols and
Macey Mize lit a spark in the LETU offense by reaching base to begin the frame.
Haydn Parker had no plans of ending the rally as she sent a three-run shot over the left center field wall to give the YellowJackets a 3-2 lead.
A single and a stolen base from the Wildcats would allow Louisiana College to tie things at three on an RBI single as the score would stay deadlocked until the top of the sixth.
Ethel Warren battled through a seven-pitch at-bat to collect an RBI single to score Mize and give the YellowJackets a one-run lead.
LC responded quickly, knotting the game once again during their offensive efforts in the bottom half of the sixth by using three hits to add a run before stranding two runners that would have given the Wildcats the lead. Neither team would put a base runner aboard in the seventh, sending things to extra-innings for the first time in the series.
It was Nichols and Mize once again who would get the YellowJackets off and running in the eighth with both reaching base for the YellowJackets. Warren would do the same, this time around sending a single to right field to bring Nichols around from second base to give the YellowJackets a one-run lead before a fly out ended the inning.
Louisiana College threatened one last time as each of the first two base runners would successfully reach base, but the LETU defense stepped up when it mattered most to get a groundout and game-ending double-play to earn the victory.
Akers earned the win in the circle for the YellowJackets tossing 6.2 innings with two strikeouts and giving up just one earned run.
Macey Mize led LETU offensively with a team-high three hits while
Emilee Anderson and Warren added two of their own. The Wildcats stranded eleven runners in the contest as the LeTourneau defense stepped up time and time again in big moments.
LETU will continue their conference action next weekend, as they gear up to face Howard Payne University in a three-game series starting with a 3 p.m. doubleheader on Friday, March 29th. HPU will enter the series after playing a Wednesday doubleheader against conference opponent, Sul Ross State University in non-conference action.
