BUC SB SWEEPS ALVIN

No. 18 Blinn takes a pair of game from Alvin by way of the run rule, 11-3 and 8-0

Buccaneers combined to score 19 runs in the doubleheader

BRENHAM, Texas – No. 18 Blinn College softball put on show for its home opener by sweeping Alvin Community College 11-3 and 8-0 as both games ended in the fifth inning Friday afternoon at Hohlt Park in Brenham.

The Buccaneers improve to 21-12 overall with the pair of victories and 6-0 in Region XIV play, which is good for a tie for first place in the South Zone Division.

“I am very happy with the pitching performances of Faith Genoway and Sam Junkin,” said Blinn head coach Rick Church. “We had to have a big offensive performance today against Alvin and we did.”

Blinn 11 – Alvin 3

For a team that had not played a game for 12 days, Blinn did not look rusty at all as the Buccaneers scored nine runs in the first two innings to pull away for an 11-3 victory in five innings to open the doubleheader.

Katie Andrie had a good game at the plate by going 3 for 4 with two doubles and a single while bringing in three runs.

“I just think I saw the ball real well today,” Andrie said. “Alvin did pitch with a lot of movement so being patient was a big thing for me today.”

Cheyenne Trader also brought in three runs with a double and a single while Courtney White brought in a pair of runs to fuel the offense.

Genoway only had one bumpy inning where Alvin scored three runs. Other than that, she shut down Alvin to only seven hits to get the win.

Blinn got to work right away in the opening inning when Nicole Garcia singled and later came in to score on a double to left by Andrie for the first run. Jordin Wilkins followed with a single to right for a 2-0 lead and then White singled in the infield for the three-run advantage. Trader capped the scoring in the inning with a two-run double to right for a 5-0 lead after one.

After batting through the lineup in the first inning, Blinn went right back to adding run support in the second when Garcia singled to get on as she eventually scored for the sixth Blinn run. Andrie followed with a double to left for a 7-0 lead. White pushed across the eighth run with a sacrifice fly and then Trader knocked in a run with a single to right for a 9-0 advantage. Alvin scored three runs in the third to get within 9-3 of Blinn.

Kalli Edwards got the Buccaneers started in the bottom half of the third with a walk and then she eventually scored on a ground out by Meghann Wrinkle for a 10-3 lead. Blinn looked to end the game early in the fifth when Garcia drew a one-out walk and then Andrie walked-off with a single to center to end the game with an 11-3 score.

Blinn 8 – Alvin 0

Blinn got a solid pitching performance from Junkin and plenty of offense to complete the sweep with an 8-0 victory in the second game over Alvin.

Junkin pitched all five innings and allowed only three hits in the shutout victory while striking out one in the win.

“In the first game, I saw that Alvin could put the ball in play so I just tried to mix in a lot of off-speed pitches,” Junkin said. “I was just trying to keep them off-balance.”

Wilkins nailed a home run and drove in two in the win. Seeley Orsak also drove in two runs with a single to lead the way for the Buccaneers.

The offense took a little bit longer to come along for Blinn but it was worth the wait as Wilkins blasted a home run off the lower edge of the scoreboard in the third inning to bring in two runs for a 2-0 lead.

The rest of the scoring came in the fourth when Trader started it off with a walk and then pinch-runner Erika Wood came in to score on a single by Edwards for a 3-0 edge. Wrinkle followed two batters later with an RBI single for a 4-0 lead.

Andrie continued the scoring with a single through the infield for the fifth run. Orsak came up with a big two-run single to give the Buccaneers a 7-0 advantage. Trader, who started the inning with a walk, later brought in a run with a single up the middle for an 8-0 lead that would hold up as the final score.

Blinn will next host Galveston College on Saturday, March 19 for a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. Galveston also holds a 6-0 record atop the South Zone standings.

For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.

(Story and photos courtesy, Jake Gordon, Blinn Information)