Texas A&M softball met Kentucky in the final series at the Aggie Softball Complex and clinched a series victory in dramatic fashion.
Adding to an incredibly successful weekend for Texas A&M Athletics, the Aggie softball team took yet another SEC series. Texas A&M (36-10, 9-6 SEC) played what would end up being its last game at the Aggie Softball Complex. Although the team dropped the final game, it still won the series, including one win in dramatic fashion.
During Game 1, the Aggies basically cruised. Par for the course, Trinity Harrington started and basically shut the Wildcats down while the Aggies scored in every single inning except the 2nd. Once Sarah Hudek hit a solo home run in the 1st, the floodgates opened and the Aggies ran wild. The Wildcats were limited to just a 2-run homer off Harrington. Payton McBride closed out the final inning and the Aggies took Game 1. Final score: 9-2 Aggies.
Game 2 was a little trickier. Freshman Kayla Pointer got the start and struck out 2 but her day ended when she gave up a 2-run homer in the 2nd inning followed by an RBI single. The Aggies then went to the pen for Lexi Smith, who shut down the Wildcats for the rest of the game. The Aggies got within 1 in the 3rd when Ashley Walters hit a 2-run homer of her own.
The game stayed that way until the Aggies tied it in the 6th with an RBI single. An inning later, in the bottom of the 7th, Kaitlyn Alderink won the game on an RBI single, and the Aggies clinched the series on a walk off not even 10 minutes after the Aggie baseball team swept Alabama in the same fashion.
Game 3 didn’t quite go as planned. Turns out, SEC teams really don’t like getting swept. Trinity Harrington got the start again, and while she performed mostly admirably, she didn’t get nearly the amount of run support she got in Game 1. Kentucky got the scoring started with an RBI single in the 2nd inning, and while the Aggies took a 2-1 lead in the 3rd off an Ashley Walters two-RBI double, that was all they were able to muster. Kentucky tied the game in the 5th and took a 3-2 lead in the 6th. The Aggies had a bases-loaded chance to take the lead for good, but they didn’t capitalize. Such is life in the SEC.
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Overall, taking two out of three from a team ranked in the Top 25 is never something to complain about, especially when said team is one that took the series from A&M last year. Although the Aggies dropped the final game, they won the series, and the walk off that clinched it was a fitting end to an era. Next time the Aggies play at home, they will be at the shiny new Davis Diamond. But first, they have a trip to LSU from Friday-Sunday next weekend.
***stats and info from 12thman.com***