BLINN SOFTBALL STAYED HOT WITH A DOUBLEHEADER SWEEP OVER COASTAL BEND
Story by Joe Alberico, Blinn College Sports Information
The 15th-ranked Blinn College softball team could not have asked for a better start to Region 14 South play.
The Buccaneers earned a 9-1 and 3-1 sweep of Coastal Bend College on Wednesday in Beeville, Texas.
Blinn pushed its winning streak to four games and improved to 16-4 overall and 2-0 in South competition.
“It was great to get our first two region wins under our belts,” Bucs head coach Rick Church said. “The runs came easier in game one as we had a little more difficulty with Coastal Bend’s starting pitcher in game two, but we still found ways to score runs and get the job done.”
Blinn came out firing in game one, scoring six runs through the first two innings.
Sophomore catcher Cadence Wiese put the Buccaneers on the board in the first with a sacrifice fly before freshman outfielder Lexis Moss blasted a two-run home run to left field for a 3-0 cushion. The long ball was her seventh of the season.
In the second inning, an error allowed sophomore first baseman Daniela Lopez to score, sophomore outfielder Halle Scheel added a sacrifice fly, and Moss singled in another run to make it 6-0.
Scheel drove in another run on a sacrifice fly in the fourth, and in the seventh, freshman infielder Brianna Moreno delivered an RBI single before sophomore infielder Annie Beckendorf capped the scoring with a sac fly.
The Cougars broke up the shutout with an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh.
Blinn totaled 11 hits in the opener, led by three-hit performances from Moss and freshman outfielder Skylar Flanagan. Moss drove in three runs, while Scheel finished with two RBIs.
The offensive outburst was more than enough support for sophomore pitcher Brynn Gallamore (8-1), who tossed a three-hit complete game. She allowed one unearned run while walking one and striking out five to earn her second victory in as many days.
Sophomore pitcher Madisyn Bracknell helped the Buccaneers complete the sweep by prevailing in a pitchers’ duel in game two.
Bracknell (5-2) also went the distance, allowing one earned run on five hits with four strikeouts and no walks.
“We benefited from some very good pitching today,” Church said. “Brynn pitched very well in game one, and Madisyn got stronger every inning to keep us in game two.”
As it did in the opener, Blinn struck first in game two when Wiese singled home Scheel in the first inning for a 1-0 lead.
Coastal Bend answered with a run in the bottom of the frame before the Buccaneers regained the advantage in the third. Wiese later scored on a wild pitch to account for the game-winning run.
A run-scoring error in the seventh provided Blinn with some breathing room.
Bracknell allowed a leadoff single in the Cougars’ final at-bat but induced back-to-back groundouts and a flyout to secure the victory.
Flanagan, Scheel, and Moreno paced Blinn’s nine-hit effort with two hits apiece.
The Buccaneers will look to remain unbeaten in South play when they host Angelina College for a twin bill beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday at Hohlt Park in Brenham. KWHI will have live coverage beginning with the pregame at 1:35pm on 1280AM, 101.7FM, and KWHI.com.