Cowgirls Snap Losing Streak With Sweep of Sul Ross State
By: Eric Boynton
Updated: March 15, 2013
ABILENE, Texas -- Hardin-Simmons' softball team
broke its 13-game losing streak with a doubleheader sweep of Sul Ross State, 9-1
and 11-5, in American Southwest Conference action at Ellis Field on Friday
afternoon.
The Cowgirls exploded
for nine runs in the first game to put the run rule in effect. Brittany Acosta
went the distance in the circle for HSU and she scattered four hits and allowed
just one run to earn the win.
HSU jumped on the
board in the first inning when Sarah Truelove walked, moved to second on a
throwing error on a pickoff attempt moved to third on a Syndie Darden sacrifice
bunt and scored on a Mac Clay sacrifice fly.
SRSU scored its lone
run in the third inning on an Amanda Garza RBI double to left field.
HSU blew the game open
in the fourth inning when Carley Willis doubled and moved to third on a
sacrifice bunt by Julia Bradley. She then scored on a fielding error on a ball
hit by Kara LeLeux. Shelby McIntyre followed with a walk and Tera Davis reached
on an error on a sac bunt attempt. After a pop out, Truelove hammered a pitch
over the left field wall for a grand slam to make it 6-1. Clay had an RBI double
later in the inning.
The Cowgirls finished
the game off in the fifth when Bradley was hit by a pitch and Davis walked with
two outs. Jayton Gordon double off the wall in left field and the run-rule was
in effect.
Gordon had two of the
six HSU hits and four different Lobos had hits.
In the second game HSU
scored a run in the bottom of the first on a Clay squeeze bunt to score Trulove,
who had singled and stole second and third base.
The Lobos scored three
times in the third inning. Shelby Doederlein had an RBI double and Christina
Graham hit her fourth home run of the season, a two-run shot to make it
3-1.
HSU responded with two
runs in the bottom of the third to tie the game on a two-run home run by Clay.
The Cowgirls took a 5-3 lead in the fourth on a Darden RBI single and Ashten
Huddleston scored on an error.
In the fifth
Doederlein had an RBI single to make it 5-4 and Shelby Contreras had a an RBI
single in the sixth inning to tie the game at 5-5.
HSU exploded for six
runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Clay had an RBI single to score Truelove
who had walked and moved up on a Darden sacrifice bunt. Willis followed with an
RBI single and Bradley singled and the runners moved up on a throwing error to
score Clay. McIntyre then followed with a three-run home run to left field.
Nathalie De La Torre later had a pinch-hit RBI single in the
inning.
Truelove had three
hits and scored four runs and Clay had three hits and drove in four runs to pace
HSU. Contreras had three hits for SRSU.
Carol Swindell started
the game for the Cowgirls and allowed four runs on five hits in five innings.
Acosta came on and earned the win in relief to improve to 3-8 on the year. She
allowed two hits and a run. Contreras took the loss in relief for SRSU allowing
five runs in an inning and one-third.
The Cowgirls are now
4-15-1 on the year and 2-4 in league play. Sul Ross State fell to 5-11 overall
and 0-2 in ASC action. The teams will play an 11 a.m. doubleheader on Saturday,
that was originally scheduled for noon.
