ABILENE - Abilene Christian softball rebounded from a 8-0 loss in which it was two hit with a brilliantly played 8-2 team victory to split Friday's doubleheader against first-place McNeese State at Poly Wells Field.
The loss was the Cowgirls' (24-12) first of the year in conference play after starting 10-0.
Junior transfer
Julia Montoya was one of many Wildcat stars in their nightcap triumph, going the distance on just 77 pitches and one strikeout. She also scattered just four hits and retired 13 of 15 final batters she faced after spotting McNeese a 2-0 lead in the third.
After getting a pop to short to end that frame, Montoya retired the side in order in the fourth and fifth and stranded single runners in the sixth and seventh.
Montoya additionally received a huge defensive catch at the wall in left field by
Kristin Watkins to rob catcher Erika Piancastelli of her third home run of the day. But in the seventh, the game ended on a routine play to shortstop
Peyton Hedrick with a runner at third base.
"It sure feels good to win," said head coach
Bobby Reeves. "Julia went out there and threw strikes, got ahead in the count and spun the ball well to get us a lot of pop ups (12).
"The offensive effort also was great, but we still have one game left to play and have to come ready."
Hedrick - the Wildcats' leading hitter with a .440 batting average - went 2-for-3 in game two which included her fourth home run of the spring - a three-run blast in the sixth that made it an 8-2 game.
The Wildcats (6-23, 2-9 Southland) were down to their last out that inning and leading 5-2 when
Taylor Brown reached on an error by the second baseman - one of six today for the Cowgirls.
Kristin Watkins followed with a bloop single to right center and Hedrick came through with the much-needed insurance runs.
Incredibly, it was ACU's ability to capitalize on McNeese's mistakes that led to all eight of its runs.
Down 2-0 to start the fourth inning,
Holly Neese reached on an infield single and hustled to second after the throw sailed high. She then moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by
Kaleigh Singleton and scored on a wild pitch by starter Jamie Allred.
The Wildcats kept their lineup moving and eventually loaded the bases with one out thanks to a walk, hit by pitch and single to right by
Melissa Rodriguez.
Demi McNulty - the No. 9 batter - then plated the game-tying run with a ground ball to short.
The go-ahead run came across one batter later when Piancastelli rifled the ball down to second base trying to pick off Rodriguez, but shortstop Hailey Drew muffed the catch to allow pinch runner
Lakin Carpenter to score from third.
The Wildcats never trailed again as they scored two more runs in the fifth on a pair of RBI hits by Singleton and
Baylee Travers. Singleton drove in Hedrick after the Wildcat infielder reached second base on a bobbled ball by the left fielder Tori Yanitor.
Singleton later went to third on
Brianna Barnhill's hit to left and came home on Travers' single to right.
ACU outhit McNeese in game two 11-4 with Brown, Singleton and Hedrick all registering a multi-hit game. And the eight runs were the most allowed by Cowgirl pitching since getting beat 11-3 by UL-Lafayette on Feb. 22.
McNeese entered the weekend with the lowest team ERA in the Southland at 2.10 and starter Emily Vincent largely held the Wildcats in check for most of game one's 8-0 victory as she struck out five batters in as many innings.
ACU indeed came very close to being no-hit, but Singleton - pinch hitting for
Cara Hoover - grounded one into the hole at shortstop to start the seventh. Two outs later Brown dropped one in front of the left fielder to load the bases, but Vincent got Hedrick to fly out to right to end the game.
The Wildcats loaded the bases earlier against Vincent in the third trailing 5-0 on a walk and two errors but got nothing from it. With one away Brown was forced out at home plate by third baseman Melissa Arriaga and Hedrick followed with an infield pop fly.
McNeese scored three of its five second-inning runs on a home run to straightaway centerfield by Piancastelli off starter
Emily Seidel. She then hit her 12th round-tripper of the year in the fourth (vs. Montoya) to make it a 7-0 game.
The Cowgirls' scored their eighth and final run on Drew's sacrifice fly to right.
"I told the team in between games to just keep on keeping on, and we certainly took care of business on our end," said Reeves. "I also wanted Julia to put the ball in play and throw strikes, which she did very well."
Montoya through two appearances today tossed 109 pitches through 10.0 innings of work and surrendered just three earned runs on eight hits.
The rubber game between the Wildcats and Cowgirls starts Saturday at noon and will be live streamed on ACUSports.com. Handling the broadcast duties will be
Seth Wilson and
Hannah Null.
