Gig Em Gazette
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Texas A&M Softball is Red-Hot Entering the Home Stretch

By Shelbie Warr

Aug 3, 2016; Huntington Beach, CA, USA; Birmingham Thunderbolts helmets line the dugout during the game against the OC Batbusters at Huntington Beach Sports Complex. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 3, 2016; Huntington Beach, CA, USA; Birmingham Thunderbolts helmets line the dugout during the game against the OC Batbusters at Huntington Beach Sports Complex. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Infield

Junior Tori Vidales has been strong at first for the Aggies throughout the season, both offensively and defensively. She has two errors on the season, operating at a 99.1% fielding percentage. Offensively, she is batting .347 with 10 home runs and 29 RBI. Vidales is shaping up to be one of the strongest players that the Texas A&M Softball program has ever seen.

Sophomore Kaitlyn Alderink is spending her second season as the stater for the Aggies at second base and she is just as strong as her neighbor at first. Her fielding percentage is at 98.5% with two errors on the season. Her bat has been huge for the Aggies, hitting at a .367 clip with 16 RBI and a home run.

Junior Kristen Cuyos is on her third season as the every day shortstop for the Aggies. She is batting at a .311 clip with a team leading 35 RBI. She is tied with Riley Sartain for second place on the team in homers, Vidales being in first with 10. Cuyos has 4 errors on the season, but is a reliable player at the short stop position.

Sophomore Riley Sartain joins Kaitlyn Alderink as a second year starter in the infield. Sartain leads Aggie starters with a .430 batting average, good for #36 in the NCAA. She is second on the team in home runs and second in RBI with 33 on the year. With only four errors on the year, she rounds out a nearly perfect Aggie infield.

The Outfield

Like Lexi Smith, freshman Sarah Hudek is a transfer student. Hudek was a pitcher at Bossier Parish Community College, but she has made a beautiful transition to right field for the Aggies. Hudek is batting .305 with 28 RBI on the year so far. She has yet to make an error in right field.

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Junior, home town girl Erica Russell has been a defensive machine for the Aggies in center field. Russell is only batting .211 on the season, which is low compared to her hard hitting counter parts, but she makes sure those hits count. She has 12 RBI and has worked 11 walks throughout the season. The Aggie center fielder has only made one error on the season and about a million Sports Center Top 10 plays.

Sophomore Keeli Milligan is as strong as they come in left field. Much like her right field counter part, she has yet to make an error. Her bat sits about the middle of the lineup in terms of average, hitting a .298 clip. She has 6 RBI and has yet to hit a homer on the season.

These three ladies operate a strong, shut down outfield that has been instrumental in the success of the team as a whole.

Next: Series Preview - A&M Baseball vs Alabama

What’s Next?

The Aggies will head to Arkansas this weekend for a head to head SEC West series. The schedule for that series is as follows.

  • Friday, 5pm on ESPNU
  • Saturday,1pm Not Televised
  • Sunday, 1pm on SEC Network+

Keep an eye on this team y’all. They are a special group that could make a deep run into the post season.

***STATS FROM AGGIE ATHLETICS***