ALVA, Okla. – The Northwestern Oklahoma State University Softball team showed their never back down attitude as they beat UAM 3-2 in an emotionally charged 13 inning contest. Despite losing the first game of the day 1-0, the Rangers took the series 3-1 and seem to be gaining some steam heading into the second half of the season.
Game 1
Coming off her incredible no-hitter performance on Friday,
Madison Garza took to the circle looking to shut down the Arkansas-Monticello offense for a second straight day. But the Blossoms weren't about to let her get away unscathed.
UAM put together three straight hits in the top of the 1
st to take a 1-0 lead early. After Maranda Clendenin drove in Ashton Currey with an RBI double past a diving
Brittany Corrales, Garza retired the next two batters to get out of the inning with minimal damage.
The Blossoms tried to get things going again in the 2
nd when Madi
Parrott misplayed a ball through the five-hole, allowing Kali Bolter to reach on the error. When Bolter tried to steal second on the very next pitch,
Audrey Estes gunned her down for the second out of the inning. Garza got herself into some two-out trouble, but Parrott bailed her out with a diving tag when the UAM runner rounded third base a little too far, ending the inning.
The Rangers struggled to get anything going in the early innings, as UAM starter Kendra Coleman continued her recent string of success. Entering the game sporting a 1.72 ERA in 73.1 innings of work, the senior transfer out of Carl Albert struck out four Rangers in the first three innings.
Garza seemed to have her differences with the home plate umpire in the 5
th inning, as she was charged with three walks on close pitches. But the experienced arm of Garza pitched her way out of danger as she sat down got Korie Parker to ground out, ending the bases-loaded threat.
Finding themselves down by just one run in the 6
th, the Rangers knew they weren't out of it. Despite mustering only two hits, a walk and a HBP off Coleman through their first five at bats,
Jill Webb's didn't give up.
Freshman
Kendall Jones was solid out of the bullpen for Northwestern, allowing only two walks and no hits in her two innings of relief.
The Rangers delivered some drama in the bottom of the 7
th as
Megan Sanders drove a ball to left that bounced over the wall for a ground-rule double. But Coleman would hang on to the 1-0 win thanks to two diving plays to secure her 10
th victory of the season.
Game 2
Offense was hard to come by in the first game, and game two on the afternoon proved no different.
Both teams were unable to get much of anything going until the 4
th inning, when the Rangers threatened with two runners. Back-to-back singles by Mills and Parrott left runners at second and third, but UAM starter Kaylee Freeman got Estes to ground out to end the inning.
Karly Murray was in the circle for the black-and-red, a day after firing a complete game shutout over UAM. The right-hander allowed just two hits in her first four frames before Aubree Head led off the
5
th with a double to left. Murray cruised through the first seven innings of the ballgame, but the Ranger bats just couldn't give her the support she had earned.
It wasn't until the bottom of the 9
th that the Rangers gave themselves any opportunities to score. Only needing one run to break the scoreless deadlock, Northwestern tried to beat the Blossoms with some small ball. With
Brittany Corrales leading off the inning with a single through the right side, Webb looked to Mills to sac-bunt her over to second. But the Rangers couldn't capitalize, stranding Corrales and extending the game.
The 10
th inning saw both squads escape sizable jams, but ultimately neither could take advantage. Murray left the bases loaded and Freeman shrugged off a leadoff double by Estes that never came around to score.
Northwestern had yet another chance in the 11
th when
Peyton Garrett made it to second on an error by Monticello second baseman McKenzie Rice. Corrales bunted, allowing Garrett to make it to third with just one out. Mills appeared to have ended the game with a line-drive to the right side, but Rice made an incredible catch and throw to double off Garrett at third, who couldn't scramble back to the bag in time.
UAM finally broke the drought in the top of the 12
th when a leadoff hit-by-pitch and an RBI single by Rice gave the Cotton Blossoms the game's first lead.
When the game looked all but over with two outs in the bottom half, a walk to Estes set the stage for
Macy Madewell to be a hero. The Texan outfielder drove a 2-1 offering from Freeman off the wall in right-center, allowing Estes to scramble around the bases and tie it up at one a piece. But the euphoria was short lived. Maranda Clendenin sent a charge through her dugout when the UAM shortstop annihilated a ball over the fence in left to once again give Monticello the advantage.
But with heart and determination, the Rangers somehow found a way.
Another error by the UAM infield gave
Jordan Sutton a free bag to lead off the 13
th. With pinch runner Hayes in the game, Garrett singled to the right side to give the Rangers runners at first and second with nobody out. After throwing 12 innings of one run softball, UAM coach Alvy Early lifted Freeman in favor of game one starter Kendra Coleman to try to close out the game. The move appeared to pay off when Coleman caught Corrales swinging, however the Rangers had other plans.
With the whole Northwestern crowd behind her,
Amber Mills came through with a game-winning 2-RBI double to left that finally put an end to the 13 inning marathon.
Murray's fantastic weekend ended with a gutsy 188 pitch outing in which she allowed just two earned runs on 12 hits. The Ranger starter struck out 15 without walking a batter in her 13 innings of work in the 3-2 walk-off victory.
Up Next
Northwestern will now hit the road for eight straight games, beginning next weekend when they visit nationally ranked #4 Southern Arkansas (25-3, 15-1 GAC) in Magnolia, Ark. First pitch on Friday, March 24 is set for 2 p.m.
For the latest news and updates on Ranger Softball, follow @NWOSUAthletics on Twitter or visit www.riderangersride.com
