CONWAY, S.C. — In a game that featured at least one run by either team in six of the game's seven innings, it was the Texas State softball team that found the momentum late as the Bobcats scored two in the top of the seventh to beat Coastal Carolina, 9-7, Sunday morning.
"We definitely found a way," said Texas State softball head coach
Ricci Woodard. "We just kept on answering back. It would be nice to be the aggressors every now and then, but I felt like today was just a respond day and we did a great job of responding today."
Coastal Carolina (12-17, 1-8) started the offensive fireworks in the bottom of the first when Keirstin Roose drove in Makiya Thomas on a single down the left-field line. Roose worked her way to third, before scoring on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Iyania De Jesus.
Texas State (17-13, 5-4) immediately responded in its half of the second when
Ciara Trahan doubled home
Kylie George and
Anna Jones from second and third, respectively, with one out in the inning.
Roose pushed the Chanticleers back ahead by a pair of runs with a one-out, two-run home run to left field.
In the top of the fourth inning, the Bobcats took command of the game with a five-run, four-hit inning that was highlighted by run-scoring hits from
Sara Vanderford,
Caitlyn Rogers and
Anna Jones.
Presley Glende, who entered the circle for
Jessica Mullins with one out in the bottom of the third, kept the Coastal Carolina offense at bay up until the bottom of the sixth, when Payton Ebersole hit a two-run home run to bring the Chanticleers to within one. Two batters later, Roose singled home Thomas, again, to tie the game at 7.
With the game nearing a pre-determined "drop time," the Texas State offense came back to life in the top of the seventh with two runs on four hits.
Kylie George, who reached via an infield single, then advanced to second on a wild pitch and third on a fielder's choice, scored on another Coastal Carolina wild pitch to push the Bobcats ahead.
Tori McCann, who pinch hit for Trahan, extended the Bobcats' lead to two with a single to right field to score
Hannah Earls from third. Texas State looked poised to continue to build on that lead by loading the bases, but back-to-back outs kept the lead at two.
Coastal Carolina attempted a seventh-inning rally, when De Jesus opened the inning with a single to left field. But Mullins, who returned to the circle in the bottom of the sixth, recorded three straight outs to seal the win.
Texas State will now turn its attention to a mid-week contest at UTSA on Wednesday, March 30 at 6 p.m. CT, before hosting a three-game series against Louisiana starting on Friday, April 1.
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