Aggies pick up four wins in Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Tournament
Utah State’s softball team opened a weekend of tournament play at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi with two wins over Omaha (5-3) and Texas Southern (7-0).
The Aggies scored double-digit hits during both games on Friday, and played both games error-free for the first time of the year. After adding two more wins under their belt, the team improves to 4-6 on the season.
The first game against Omaha was a hard earned win. The Mavericks scored first by putting up three runs in the top of the second inning, bringing two runs in on a double to right field, one on a single to left field which brought a third runner across home plate.
USU fought during the next few innings and put together 5 hits, but it was not until the bottom of the fifth inning when the Aggie matched the Mavericks score.
Senior outfielder Jazmin Clarke led off with a single back to the mound, and advanced to second on a groundout. Sophomore Riley Plogger drew a walk, while senior catcher Brina Buttacavoli loaded bases with a single hit. Senior third baseman Amee Aarhus lined into a fielder’s choice, with both she and Buttacavoli staying on base. A scrappy throw allowed the runners to advance base, and brough Clarke and Plogger to cross home plate. Next at the plate was freshman shortstop Emery Marshall, who brought Buttacavoli home with a single up the middle. Next up after the second out, junior first baseman Bailee Trapp doubled to bring in both Aarhus and Marshall.
During the sixth inning, the Mavericks had four base runners in the top of the sixth, but none came from making a hit. After a wild pitch from Hull that resulted in runners on second and third, sophomore Kellie White came in and saved the game by pitching the final two outs.
The Aggies ended the game with 11 hits and zero errors, while Omaha recorded six hits and one error.
Utah State went on to continue the day with a shutout game against Texas Southern.
In the top of the fourth, the bases were quickly loaded due to three-straight singles hit by the Aggies. Buttacavoli reached on a fielder’s choice, while Plogger got out at home. Then, sophomore catcher Allanah Alvarado singled to the right side and brought freshman second baseman Stephanie Reed across home. After another out at the plate, Trapp scored her second double of the day to sweep the bases and put USU up 4-0.
At the top of the sixth inning, Aarhus walked and Buttacavoli singled to put runners on base. Aarhus came across the plate due to a wild pitch and an error made by the Texas Southern catcher, while Buttacavoli came around by Alvarado hitting a single. Marshall singled, and senior Emily Hunter got to third by Texas Southern making a pair of errors. Clarke reached on an error as well and brought Hunter across home.
USU had 10 hits and no errors, while Texas Southern had three hits and four errors.
On Saturday, Utah State fell to Texas Southern, 9-8, but came out on top against the Islanders, 8-5.
The first game of the day started out against Texas Southern. The Tigers were the first to put up runs, scoring two in the bottom of the first. Utah State then started the retaliation by earning a run in the top of the third. Things did not start heating up until the beginning of the fifth inning, where the Aggies took control of the game by taking a 7-2 lead. By the middle of the seventh, Utah State was still on top 8-3, but the Tigers began a comeback in the bottom of the inning. The game ended with a close loss, with Texas Southern scoring a run off of a double to center field when first and second bases were filled.
When the Aggies went up against the Islanders the next game, the Islanders put up a run in the top of the first. Utah State quickly responded in the bottom of the same inning with a run.
In the third inning, the Islanders took control of the lead again with a single-shot home run, but USU added three more runs on top of that.
The bottom of the sixth picked up for the Aggies as they built up their lead. Freshman infielder Joely Williamson started off the inning with a double, with outfielder Kayla Fielder coming in as a pinch hitter. Junior designated player Bailey Lewis and Buttacavoli each hit singles, with both Fielder and Buttacavoli scoring on a TA&M-CC error. Clarke came back with a triple, but the throw bought her and Lewis time to get across the plate. Utah State added another hit, and ended the inning with a strikeout.
TA&M-CC tried shooting for a comeback in the seventh inning by scoring three runs, but sophomore Kellie White opened and closed out the game with strikeouts.
Sunday concluded the tournament, and the Aggies went out with a bang with a 15-0 five-inning no-hit win against host team Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Freshman pitcher Delaney Hull pitched the entire game Sunday, throwing the first no-hitter of her collegiate career. This is the first no-hitter by a USU pitcher since at least 2002. Hull also matched her career-high of five strikeouts against the Islanders.
In the top of the first the Aggies started the scoring spree with two runs, but the real show did not start until the second inning where Utah State put up seven runs. Freshman second baseman Stephanie Reed led-off with a double, and singles from Trapp and Clarke brought in two runs after an Islander error. Following one out, the team put together two more singles, which brought in two more runners when Buttacavoli hit a home run to right center. Plogger hit a double to left field, and Williamson walked. Then, Reed helped to load the bases after a TA&M-CC error. Trapp brough Plogger back across the plate with a fielder’s choice just before the inning ended on a flyout.
The top of the fourth brought some success to the Aggies, with Reed serving up a single and Trapp adding a home run to the mix. In the top of the fifth with two outs, Utah State added four more runs to their score.
The Islanders were able to get one runner on base in the bottom of the fifth due to an error on the Aggies side, and a fielder’s choice came next and a fly ball to center ended the game.
Utah State will continue its non-conference season after a weekend of rest with a game at Pacific on Wednesday, March 7. Following that game, Utah State will go on to play in the Aggie Invitational March 8-10, hosted by UC Davis.