BUCS 2-0 AT REGION SOFTBALL TOURNEY

LUFKIN, Texas – Blinn College softball was able to recover from an early deficit to finish strong to beat Galveston College 9-1 in six innings in the second round of the Region XIV tournament Sunday afternoon.

“After we helped Galveston get an early run we were able to tie the game early on and we started settling into the game,” said Rick Church, Blinn head coach. “We just kept putting the ball in play and got some key doubles today.”

With the win, the Buccaneers improve to 37-15 and move on to play the winner of the San Jacinto College-South or Bossier Parish Community College on Monday, May 8 at 3 p.m.

Amy Alexander was able to overcome an adverse reaction to an insect bite that forced her to visit the emergency room the day before to go 3-for-4 with a double and two singles in the win.

“I didn’t feel too well at the beginning of the game but I was able to do my job and come in and hit,” Alexander said. “I feel like we are getting momentum just at the right time

Nicole Garcia brought in a pair of runs with a double and two singles. Shelby Achille, Emily Noah, Gabriela Gomez and Katy Sawyer each had an RBI in the win.

Colleen Bentke was solid in the circle for Blinn by going six innings and allowing an unearned run on three hits while striking out six to pick up the win.

Galveston was able to strike first with a single run in the second inning but Blinn charged right back. Alexander started out the bottom of the second with a one-out double and then was chased home by a double by Gomez down the left field line to knot the game at 1-1.

The Buccaneers broke the tie in the fifth inning as Alyssa Hitt started it off with a single and Morgan Gray reached on an error. Both Hitt and Gray scored on a double by Garcia down the left field line for a 3-1 lead.

Garcia and Achille later scored in the inning on errors to give Binn a 5-1 lead. Sawyer added to the score by ripping an RBI single to left for the sixth run and then Gomez scored on a passed ball for a 7-1 lead.

Blinn tried to end the game early in the sixth as the Buccaneers loaded the bases with singles from Garcia and Kalli Edwards and then Achille was hit by a pitch. Noah brought in the eighth run after she was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and then Edwards was able to score the winning run on a Galveston error to give Blinn a 9-1 victory.

SATURDAY

Blinn College softball received a shutdown performance from Colleen Bentke in the circle and a pair of RBIs from Shelby Achille to earn a 6-0 victory over Kilgore College in the first round of the Region XIV tournament.

“It is always great to get that first win at regionals,” said Rick Church, Blinn head coach. “Colleen Bentke kept the bases clean most of the game and got out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth.”

Bentke was impressive in the circle by pitching all seven innings and allowing just four hits while striking out 10 to get the win.

Achille led the way with a home run and brought in two of the six runs. Kalli Edwards and Emily Noah each had a single and an RBI. Nicole Garcia, Gabriela Gomez and Morgan Gray each had a pair of singles in the win.

“We had great pitching and a composed defense today,” Achille said. “We made adjustments at the plate and that helped us take care of business against Kilgore.”

It took a couple of innings but Blinn was able to get going in the third when Gray started the inning with a single and then came in score on a RBI ground out by Edwards for a 1-0 lead. A hard-hit single to left by Noah gave the Buccaneers a 2-0 lead.

Gray was again the catalyst in the fourth inning with a one-out single and then she and Garcia scored on an error for a 4-0 advantage. Achille added the finishing touches on the scoring with a two-run home run to left for a 6-0 lead that would hold up until the final out.

(Story courtesy: Jake Gordon, Blinn Information)