Category: Softball

No. 18 Texas A&M goes 4-1 at the Judi Garman Classic to improve to 19-2 on the season

Texas A&M run rules DePaul in their final game at the Judi Garman Classic to move to 19-2 on the season

The Texas A&M softball team has yet another successful out this time in Fullerton California at the Judi Garman Classic. They did drop one game, but it went into extra innings and the Aggies punched back as often as they could but ultimately fell just short.

Even with that loss they still outscored their opposition 40-15 over the three days. They will have a mid-week game and then start SEC play on March 8 against South Carolina at Davis Diamond.

day one:

Texas A&M vs Michigan / Win / 6-0

  • Total offense:  8 hits, 6 runs
  • Pitching: Emiley Kennedy W (8-0): 7.0 innings, 12 Ks, 102 pitches.

Texas A&M vs Long Beach State / Win / 16-7

  • Total offense:  14 hits, 16 runs
  • Pitching: Emily Leavitt W (5-0) 2.2 innings, 1 Ks, 40 pitches. Shaylee Ackerman: 3.1 innings, 4 Ks, 80 pitches. Brooke Vestal: 0.0 innings, 0 K, 20 pitches.

day two:

Texas A&M vs Weber State / Loss / 5-4

  • Total offense:  8 hits, 5 runs
  • Pitching: Emiley Kennedy L (8-1): 1.2 innings, 1 Ks, 40 pitches. Emily Leavitt 6.0 innings, 5 Ks, 98 pitches.

Texas A&M vs Cal State Fullerton / Win / 4-1

  • Total offense:  4 hits, 4 runs
  • Pitching: Emiley Kennedy W (9-1): 7.0 innings, 10 Ks, 117 pitches.

day three:

Texas A&M vs DePaul / Win / 10-2

  • Total offense:  13 hits, 10 runs
  • Pitching: Emiley Kennedy W (10-1): 5.0 innings, 5 Ks, 78 pitches.

Below are some of the best moments from the weekend courtesy of the Texas A&M softball social media.

Duke softball stays within top five of D1Softball rankings after Syracuse sweep

Duke didn’t allow a run over the entire weekend in a three-game sweep over Syracuse that featured 10 scoreless innings from star pitcher Jala Wright. The performance kept them in D1Softball’s top five.

Duke softball remained in the top five of D1Softball’s weekly rankings on Monday after a weekend sweep of the Syracuse Orange.

The Blue Devils, now 15-1 for the season and 3-0 in conference play, didn’t allow a run for the entire three-game series.

They began with a 7-0 win on Saturday, the first game of a double-header. Star pitcher Jala Wright continued her exceptional form with six shutout innings, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out five batters.

Wright took the mound again on Sunday, throwing the first four innings and surrendering three hits but again striking out five batters. She earned her seventh win of the season for the latter performance, and she retired her last six batters in a row.

The performances gave Wright four consecutive shoutout starts with 20 combined innings between them. She sports an ERA of 0.37 with more than three times as many strikeouts (48) as hits allowed (15) through her 37.2 innings of work this season.

The second game of Saturday’s double-header ended almost the exact same way with a 6-0 Duke victory. Senior Francesca Frelick, who batted in two runs during the first game against the Orange, batted in two more in the second with a double in the fourth inning.

Frelick has been a run machine for the Blue Devils as of late. Her four RBIs on Saturday gave her 13 runs batted in over her last six games, including a six-RBI performance against Michigan State.

Senior Claire Davidson also mashed a solo home run in the fourth inning, her fifth shot of the year and her second RBI of the afternoon.

The offense did the least damage in Sunday’s finale, with a three-run triple from first baseman Gisele Tapia in the bottom of the first providing the game’s only three runs.

Texas took over the top spot in the D1Softball poll from three-time defending national champion Oklahoma, who dropped to second. LSU and Oklahoma State rounded out the rest of the top 10.

Three other ACC teams made the site’s top 25. Clemson came in 11th, Virginia Tech slotted in 15th, and Florida State rounded out the trio in 16th.

Auburn softball tops North Texas, USC Upstate to complete undefeated weekend

The Tigers ended the Jane B. Moore Memorial by outscoring North Texas and USC Upstate, 16-4, on Sunday.

After earning two wins in Saturday’s action, the Auburn Tigers (12-2-1) closed the Jane B. Moore Memorial by grabbing two more wins on Sunday afternoon.

The Tigers had no issue with North Texas in the first game of the day, as they used a late-inning power surge to take a run-rule victory. In game two, Auburn needed a walk-off grand slam off the bat of Makayla Packer to earn the win over USC Upstate.

Head coach Mickey Dean was ecstatic over his team’s efforts on Sunday, especially in the final at-bat of the win over USC Upstate.

“That was fun,” Dean said Sunday. “We had some kids try to put forth some great efforts today. Even in the innings we didn’t score, we put pressure on them. Pressure tends to do funny things. We kept the pressure on. Makayla (Packer) was ready. She knew exactly what’s going to happen there. She knew exactly what the pitcher was going to try to do. She capitalized. It was beautiful.”

Here is a rundown of how Sunday’s action played out at Jane B. Moore Field.

Game one: Auburn 8 North Texas 0 (6 innings)

Runs Hits Errors LOB
North Texas 0 2 1 2
Auburn 8 9 0 1

Neither team could muster a run through the first three innings. That changed in the 4th inning when [autotag]Anna Wohlers[/autotag] hit a sacrifice fly to score [autotag]Makayla Packer[/autotag] to put Auburn ahead, 1-0. It would not take long for Auburn’s bats to warm up, as they rattled off seven runs over the next two innings to take home the run-rule victory. Wohlers and [autotag]KK McCrary[/autotag] each hit two-run blasts in the 5th inning and [autotag]Mariah Penta[/autotag] ended the game with a three-run shot to left center field.

Packer and [autotag]Nelia Peralta[/autotag] each recorded two hits in the game while Wohlers and Penta drove in three runs. [autotag]Maddie Penta[/autotag] was strong in the circle yet again by striking out 11 batters and allowing two hits in a six-inning effort. She has now pitched 27 consecutive innings without allowing a run. Penta has also struck out 45 batters while allowing just six hits over her last four games.

Game two: Auburn 8 USC Upstate 4

Runs Hits Errors LOB
USC Upstate 4 8 2 5
Auburn 8 9 0 2

The final game of the Jane B. Moore Memorial Tournament was a battle where Auburn ultimately prevailed. Wohlers continued her hot day at the plate by driving in two runs to put the Tigers up, 2-0, in the 1st inning. However, the Spartans answered by scoring four runs over the next two innings to lead 4-2 heading to the 5th inning. [autotag]Skylar Elkins[/autotag] cut into the lead by hitting her first home run of the season in the 5th, and [autotag]Icess Tresvik[/autotag] tied the game in the 6th inning with an RBI single. The final blow came off the bat of Packer, who crushed a walk-off grand slam to end the game.

[autotag]Shelby Lowe[/autotag] earned the win by tossing a two-hit, one-strikeout performance over the final inning and a third. [autotag]Annabelle Widra[/autotag] allowed three hits and three earned runs in the start while [autotag]Malayna Tamborra[/autotag] recorded four innings of relief work.

Next Game

Auburn will get one final midweek tuneup before traveling to Columbia to open SEC play this weekend at Missouri. The Tigers will host Troy on Tuesday at Jane B. Moore Field for a 5:30 p.m. CT first pitch.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on  X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__

‘We’re going to come back and be stronger’: In defeat, Patty Gasso knows Sooners will respond

The Oklahoma Sooners didn’t play well enough to win on Sunday and Patty Gasso knows her team will respond with the right mentality.

The Oklahoma Sooners hadn’t lost in more than a year: 71 games ago. But the streak came to an end on Sunday afternoon in a 7-5 extra-inning thriller against a well-coached Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns team.

The three-time defending national champions who have set just about every record in the book in recent years looked vulnerable for the first time in a long time. But it was a long time coming.

Speaking with the media after the game, head coach Patty Gasso shared what happened in the loss to Louisiana.

“We are human,” Gasso said. “We are human beings. That’s what happened today. Got absolutely give credit to Louisiana. They played well. They pitched well. They hit the ball hard. They did everything they needed to do. They deserve to win 100%.”

More: Social media reacts to Sooners loss to Louisiana

While the Ragin’ Cajuns kept the Sooners from creating one more magical moment, Oklahoma often shot itself in the foot. But Gasso believes in her team’s ability to respond.

“We knew a game like this would be coming at some time,” Gasso continued. “I don’t know that we were ready to have happen here. So, nothing was good enough today for us. And we had the spirit of coming back, which was great. But from defense, pitching to timely hitting, we wasted a lot of time early in the game. This was a game we didn’t deserve to win, and we know how to come back. I know there’s too much pride on this team for us to mope around over it. We’re going to come back and be stronger. We’ve shown that and we’re made like that.”

The Sooners weren’t going to win every game from now to eternity. That was a certainty. While the loss stings, the Oklahoma Sooners were incredible for more than a year. For 71 games, much of which was in Big 12 and NCAA tournament play, the Oklahoma Sooners found a way to win. When the moment seemed stacked against them, for more than a year, they made the magic happen.

And on what was a magical weekend in Norman with the opening of Love’s Field, the Sooners couldn’t come up with one more magical moment as their comeback bid fell short in the bottom of the eighth.

The letdown of the loss shouldn’t take away from everything they accomplished during the streak. It’s unlikely the softball world will ever witness something like that ever again.

But as they’ve reminded us so many times over the last several years, never doubt the Oklahoma Sooners. They’re capable of accomplishing extraordinary things.

They’re just getting started.

More: Best photos from opening day at Love’s Field

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.

Nebraska falls to No. 14 Missouri in 5-1 game

The Huskers concluded the Big Red Invitational on Sunday afternoon with their second game against No. 14 Missouri.

The Huskers concluded the Big Red Invitational on Sunday afternoon with their second game against No. 14 Missouri. Nebraska fell to the Tigers on Saturday and couldn’t prevent a repeat in Sunday’s game, suffering a 5-1 defeat.

Nebraska’s lone run came in the third while trailing 2-0. Brooke Andrews hit the lone RBI, and was the only player for Nebraska to deliver multiple hits on the afternoon. The Huskers finished the game with five hits, and Missouri finished with nine hits. Billie Andrews, Bella Bacon and Katelyn Caneda each finished the game with one hit.

Caitlin Olensky started in the circle and pitched for 5.2 innings. Olensky faced 28 batters and struck out two. Missouri delivered seven hits and four runs while Olensky pitched. Emerson Cope pitched the final 1.1 innings and allowed two hits and one run across seven batters.

The Huskers will travel to Arkansas to compete in the Razorback Rumble. Nebraska will start the tournament with a clash against Arkansas on Thursday night. The first pitch is set for 5 p.m.

LSU softball remains unbeaten after taking Sunday doubleheader

The Tigers are 19-0 as they prepare for SEC play, which begins next weekend.

LSU softball’s hot start to the 2024 season continued over the weekend, moving to 19-0 after it capped things off with a Sunday doubleheader that featured a 2-1 win over McNeese and a 2-0 win over Louisiana Tech.

[autotag]Sydney Berzon[/autotag] was the star of the first game against the Cowgirls, as she tossed a complete game and allowed just one run, which came in the fifth and broke a 0-0 tie. LSU answered in the bottom of the inning with a pair of RBI singles that gave it the decisive 2-1 lead.

In Game 2, it was a scoreless tie in the bottom of the sixth inning when [autotag]Maci Bergeron[/autotag] hit a two-RBI single, which resulted in the Tigers’ only runs of the game. [autotag]Kelley Lynch[/autotag] pitched a complete game shutout.

With the weekend series in the books, SEC play is now set to begin for the Tigers. First up will be a road series against Kentucky beginning on Friday.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno

Lady Vols run-rule Stetson, Brown to open Tennessee Classic

Tennessee softball run-rules Stetson and Brown to open Tennessee Classic.

No. 9 Tennessee (12-4) won two games in the Tennessee Classic on Sunday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

Tennessee defeated Stetson (7-13) and Longwood (6-10).

The Lady Vols outlasted the Hatters, 3-2, and run-ruled the Lancers, 12-1.

Against Stetson, Destiny Rodriguez went 1-for-3 and hit a winning RBI on a solo home run in the sixth inning.

Kiki Milloy went 1-for-1, recording two runs, three stolen bases and one walk, while Rylie West went 1-for-2 for one double and one RBI.

Zaida Puni hit an RBI on a groudout for Tennessee.

Karlyn Pickens (6-2) pitched 2.1 innings of scoreless relief. She allowed one hit and one walk, while recording five strikeouts.

In Tennessee’s second game, the Lady Vols defeated the Lancers in five innings.

Milloy hit two home runs and recoded three RBIs, while West hit a grand slam and McKenna Gibson hit a two-run home run in the third inning.

Payton Gottshall (5-2) pitched a complete game. She allowed one run, four hits, while recording six strikeouts.

Tennessee concludes tournament play on Monday against Longwood. First pitch is scheduled for noon EST.

Oklahoma Sooners historic 71-game win streak comes to an end

All good things must come to an end as the Sooners are stunned vs. Lousiana.

The Oklahoma Sooners took on the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for the second time this weekend to complete a five-game weekend. And for the first time in more than a year, the Sooners took a loss, falling to Louisiana 7-5 in eight innings.

Things did not start well for Oklahoma as [autotag]Kelly Maxwell[/autotag] got the start and the Sooners quickly found themselves down 2-0 at the top of the 4th inning. [autotag]Karlie Keeney[/autotag] came on in relief but walked a batter with the bases loaded to increase Louisiana’s lead to 3-0. The Sooners offense struggled to get anything going for much of the contest off of Ragin’ Cajun starter Chloe Riasetto.

The bottom of the fourth is where it looked like the Sooners would start to get going as Kinzie Hansen hit a two-run home run to cut the Ragin’ Cajuns lead to 3-2. But anytime the Sooners looked like they were about to settle down, Louisiana answered. They visitors scored a run in the top of the 7th inning as [autotag]Alyssa Britto[/autotag] fielded a ground ball before firing it home to Hansen. Hansen ended up mishandling the ball, allowing the runner to score to extend the lead to 4-2.

In the bottom of the 7th, the Sooners were down two runs with one out. [autotag]Tiare Jennings[/autotag] came up to bat and cut the lead to one with an RBI single. [autotag]Riley Ludlam[/autotag] came in to pinch hit and looped a ball into shallow right field that was misplayed. Maya Bland was running on contact and advanced to third. The throw home snuck through the Louisiana catcher, and Bland skirted home to tie the game.

In extra innings, Louisiana answered once again. They were able to get the bases loaded with no outs thanks to multiple errors by the Sooners’ defense. Ultimately, Lousiana was able to score three runs in the inning to go up 7-4.

[autotag]Cydney Sanders[/autotag] hit a solo shot to make it 7-5 and Alynah Torres reached first to bring the tying run to the plate. But with two outs and one on [autotag]Jayda Coleman[/autotag] stepped up to the plate with the record on the line. She grounded out to second, and the game was over. The Sooners lost 7-5, and their 71-game winning streak ended.

Their next game is Wednesday against Texas A&M Commerce at 6:00 p.m. CT.

More: Social media reacts to end of Sooners 71-game winning streak

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

Social media reacts to end of Oklahoma Sooners 71-game winning streak

The Oklahoma Sooners 71-game win streak came to an end in their 7-5 extra innings loss to Louisiana and here’s how social media reacted.

It was an incredible run for the Oklahoma Sooners. Winners of 71 games in a row, the magic ran out in their 7-5 loss to the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns.

Oklahoma had there chances at the plate to make things happen, but ultimately it was what happened in the circle and when the ball was in play that brought the streak to an end.

The loss comes as a shock, but simply because this team had shown the ability to overcome all obstacles en route to setting a mark that may never be surpassed. The Sooners hadn’t lost in more than a year, dating back to their 4-3 loss to the Baylor Bears in the Dave Getterman Classic last spring.

While any loss is disappointing, it’s hard to feel that way after seeing what this team has accomplished. Not only in the winning streak but over the last three-plus years during their national championship run.

If we know anything about Patty Gasso’s team, it’s they’ll bounce back. They’re a resilient and talented team.

Here’s how social media reacted to Oklahoma’s first loss of the season and the end of their 71-game winning streak.

Clemson splits doubleheader with NC State

Clemson softball split their doubleheader against NC State.

CLEMSON, S.C. – The No. 8/9 Clemson Tigers (12-4, 1-1 ACC) split action on Saturday afternoon against the NC State Wolfpack (14-4, 1-1 ACC) to open ACC play. Clemson dropped the opening game, 6-1, before coming back to run-rule NC State in game two, 8-0, in five.

Game 1 – L, 6-1

Alex Brown got things going for the Tigers in the bottom of the first inning. She hit her first triple of the season, and McKenzie Clark brought her home with a sac fly into deep left field. NC State stormed ahead in the top of the second scoring six runs to make it 6-1 in favor of the Wolfpack. The runs in the first two innings proved to be the only ones either side scored as NC State took the opening game, 6-1.

Clemson tallied seven hits in the opening game but left seven runners stranded. Brown led the team going 3-for-4 at the plate with one run scored. Valerie Cagle and Alia Logoleo each had two hits, while Clark picked up the lone RBI.

Junior Brooke McCubbin started in the circle and pitched 1.1 innings with two strikeouts, but fell to 5-2 on the year with the loss. Senior Millie Thompson pitched 4.2 innings with one strikeout before being replaced by senior Regan Spencer in the seventh.

Game 2 – W, 8-0 (5)

Clemson kicked off game two with a three-run first inning as Clark led off with a one-out single. She advanced to third after Cagle drew a walk, and Logoleo popped up to right field. Lindsey Garcia brought home the first runner with a single through the left side. Maddie Moore followed with an RBI single to plate Cagle from second and move Garcia to third. Adding an additional insurance run, Moore stole second to allow Garcia to come home on the throw down to make it 3-0 after one.

The Tigers moved to 5-0 in the third after Cagle led off the inning by reaching on an error. Julia Bomhardt replaced Cagle as a pinch runner and stole second before advancing to third as Garcia picked up her second hit of the game. Moore recorded her second RBI with a sac fly to score Bomhardt, and Vieira added the second run with an RBI hit to the right side.

Logoleo put the finishing touch on the run-rule victory in the bottom of the fourth with a three-run homer that brought Oda and Brown home. Oda was running for Abi Stuart, who opened the inning with a single to NC State’s shortstop, and Brown reached on a single to center field. Logoleo sent the first pitch of her at bat out of center field for her second home run of 2024 to make it 8-0, which held for the final inning of play.

Clemson had eight different Tigers tally at least one hit in game two. It was highlighted by Garcia going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and one RBI. Logoleo clocked three RBIs following her home run, and Moore finished with one hit and two RBIs in the game. In the circle, Cagle threw a complete five-inning performance with two strikeouts while only giving up one hit to improve to 6-2 on the year.

Up Next

Clemson and NC State will battle it out in the rubber match at McWhorter Stadium tomorrow at noon on ACCNX. Tickets for the series finale are available both online and at the gate prior to the start of the game.

– Via Clemson Athletic Communications