ABILENE – The Wildcat softball team ended its losing streak in a big way Tuesday night at Poly Wells Field. ACU (8-18) hosted the University of North Texas, the leaders of Conference USA, and needed just five innings to take down the Mean Green, 9-1. Head coach
Bobby Reeves' squad matched its season-high in runs, and used dominant pitching to earn the midweek win.
Calie Burris (5-4) got the start, and settled in nicely with a 1-2-3 first inning. The Wildcats came to bat in the home half, and even though they did not score, they left two runners on against UNT starter Bailey Tindell, and put pressure on the right-handed pitcher. ACU then opened the game up early in the second.
The home team put up the second-most runs in a single inning this season (5), doing so on five hits. Junior
Blair Clayton led the frame off with a double that literally dropped on the foul line in left field and rolled into the corner.
Linsey Tomlinson then bunted her over to third base, and in the process beat the throw for an infield hit, putting runners on the corners with no one out. Junior
Caroline Adair stepped up and laid a perfect bunt down the third-base line to score Clayton, moving Tomlinson to second in the process.
Briana Tijerina drew a walk, and that set the table.
Katelyn Belch, the leadoff hitter in the lineup, rocketed a triple down the right-field line to plate both Tomlinson and Tijerina, and the sophomore would then score on the exclamation point of the inning when
Kayla Keeling launched her fifth home run of the season. The sophomore sent one out to right center field, and leads the team this season in homers. The long ball forced a pitching change, and ACU grabbed a big lead it would not surrender.
Burris was not phased by the long wait in the second inning. The Haltom, Texas native left a runner on in the third, and after allowing an rbi-single in the fourth, slammed the door with a lineout and a strikeout to end the inning. A key play in the fourth came from freshman shortstop
Kaitlyn Huseman, who made a diving back-handed grab in the hole at short to rob Jenna Goodrich of a hit for the second out.
ACU led 5-1, but kept the bats alive in the home fourth. Belch got it going with a one-out single, and stole second a batter later. Huseman then reached on an slow-roller in the infield to put runners on the corners, and after a groundout, the Wildcats opened the game up completely.
Samantha Bradley drew a walk to load the bases, and Burris then stepped to the plate. The sophomore helped herself with a two-run single into center field to score Huseman and Belch, and the route was on. Tomlinson then singled into deep right field to score two more, and ACU led 9-1. The run-rule would be in effect in the fifth.
Reeves replaced Burris with freshman
Jillian Hefner, who only needed four batters to earn her first career save. A one-out hit by pitch was the only base runner, and ACU ran away with a 9-1 victory in five innings.
Belch and Tomlinson's two hits were a team-high, with seven different 'Cats recording a base knock. Belch, Keeling, Burris, and Tomlinson each drove in a pair of runs as well. Burris allowed one earned on four hits in 4.0 innings of work.
ACU will continue its home stand with a three-game weekend set with the Cardinals of Incarnate Word as it returns to Southland Conference play. The teams will meet for a doubleheader on Friday, March 29 beginning at 5 p.m., and the series ends on Saturday, March 30 with a single game beginning at 12 p.m.
