The Wildcats left Polly Wells field heartbroken after losing their last home series against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi despite valiant efforts.
The ‘Cats struggled early in game one, finding themselves down 3-0 in the top of the third. But then, freshman infielder Peyton Hedrick had an RBI triple and scored teammate and fellow freshman outfielder Brianna Barnhill, starting a rally.
Freshman infielder Holly Neese also got on the board thanks to an error. Freshman infielder Alyson Bishoff brought Neese home after she slammed one to left field.
Freshmen played a huge role in Friday’s win. Freshman outfielder Melissa Rodriguez gave the Wildcats a 4-3 lead after an infield single to short with runners at both corners. Barnhill then slammed a two-run home run over to right field to put the score at 6-3.
Head coach Bobby Reeves used both of his star pitchers in the first game. Senior pitcher Emily Seidel threw six complete innings, giving up only two earned runs to earn the 6-3 win. Julia Montoya, junior transfer pitcher, entered in the seventh after Seidel issued a leadoff walk, earning the save after retiring three straight batters.
Game two dialed up the intensity a few notches, though. The Islanders earned a lone run early in the game, but sophomore catcher Kaleigh Singleton tied the game, 1-1, in the fourth after she hit a base-clearing double.
In the next frame, it looked like Game 2 would go to the ‘Cats, especially after Barnhill and freshman infielder Kaleigh Lightsey hit home runs Islander pitcher Katie Blanar. This gave the ‘Cats a comfortable lead of 7-2.
The Islanders then switched pitchers, and with this change, momentum switched as well.
Liz Carter, sophomore pitcher for Corpus Christi, caught a big break after she fielded a tapper form sophomore outfielder Taylor Brown. Carter then assisted in getting Hedrick out as well. These plays were what the Islanders needed, as they added one run in the sixth before the floodgates opened and Corpus Christi sent eight batters to the plate in the seventh.
Carter drove in the Islanders’ first two runs of the seventh on her second double of the game and scored on a two-out rip up the middle by junior outfielder Dani Tefft that cut ACU’s lead to 7-6.
The next play sealed the game for the Islanders as Tefft scored the game winning run after an error by the ‘Cats. ACU was unable to respond in its final at-bat of the, ending in an 8-7 loss.
ACU entered the final game of the series with eyes focused and bats ready to swing. Seidel, the only senior on the team, threw the complete game on her Senior Day.
Hedrick helped take the lead away from the Islanders after she cracked her 11th home run of the season, a two-run shot to put the score at 2-1. The Wildcats got one more run in the fourth on an RBI single up the middle by Bishoff, but in the fifth and sixth, their offense stalled against the Islanders’ Liz Carter.
Seidel gave up only one earned run in the first five innings of the game. But in the sixth, she allowed three consecutive singles before sophomore catcher Brittany Morse cracked her 10th homerun of the season to make the score 5-3. Seidel allowed no more runs, but the damage was done.
Corpus Christi took the third game, 5-3 and left Wells field with a 2-1 series final.
The Wildcats will travel to Houston this weekend to take on the Houston Baptist Huskies in their final series of the 2015 season.
First pitch is set for 2 p.m. Friday.
