The Wildcats swept Lamar in a three-game series in Beaumont this past weekend for the second conference play series.
Game one on Friday of a double-header, ACU secured the close win of 3-2.
Sidney Holman-Mansell, graduate pitcher from Belton, gained two strikeouts and only allowed four hits in her seven-innings pitched.
Lamar started off strong in the first inning by putting a run on the board, off of an RBI double.
It wasn’t until the fourth inning when the Wildcats doubled down the left-field line, sending a run home, tying the score at 1-1.
“I thought we saw some really good offense from our team,” head coach Abigail Farler said. “We had a lot of really good at-bats.”
In the bottom of the fourth, Lamar was able to secure another RBI double to right-center, giving Lamar the lead.
The Wildcats were not done putting up the fight. In the top of the fifth inning, Callie Burris, graduate infielder from Haltom, homered to center field sending home Matti Reiling, sophomore infielder from Lincoln, Nebraska, giving ACU their winning final score.
“Callie is really just fighting every at-bat for us,” Farler said. “She’s produced a ton of RBIs lately and just putting a lot of pressure on the defense.”
On game two on Friday night, the competition was still close, but ACU pulled out in front, grabbing the win 4-3.
Riley White, sophomore pitcher from Thorndale, pitched for six innings, giving up seven hits and only gained one strikeout. Lauren Schiek, graduate pitcher from Oshkosh, Wisconsin, came in at the sixth inning and only allowed one hit, receiving the save of the game.
Once again, Lamar pulled out ahead early in the second inning by an RBI single to left field.
The Wildcats then in the third inning singled out to left field, creating a two-RBI hit, giving the Wildcats the lead 2-1. In the bottom of the third inning, Lamar came back to tie the game with an RBI single.
In the fourth inning, ACU hit an RBI single to left field, giving ACU the lead once again. Then in the top of the fifth inning, the Wildcats were able to score on a Lamar error by the first baseman.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Lamar hit a sacrifice fly to right field, sending a run home.
Game three on Saturday afternoon was a high-scoring game where ACU held the lead the entire game, bringing the final, 9-6.
Holman-Mansell gained her fifth win of the season by securing eight strikeouts and allowing six hits.
“Honestly these weren’t the best outings for her,” Farler said. “If you know what’s going on, you wouldn’t tell because she just keeps fighting for us and giving us an opportunity to make some plays.”
ACU started off strong in the first inning by tallying up four runs with three of those by Avery Miloch, sophomore catcher from Georgetown, hitting a three-RBI home run to left field.
Between the second, third and fourth inning, the Wildcats managed to gain three more runs, while Lamar gained five.
In the top of the sixth inning, ACU scored on a wild pitch and an RBI single to bring the Wildcat’s total runs to nine. Lamar scored in the bottom of the sixth inning on an unearned play.
“They came out and just competed and had a ton of fun,” Farler said. “They were really clicking together this weekend and I’m glad that we got to see some wins out of that.”
ACU stayed on the road and headed to Tulsa, Oklahoma to take on Tulsa for a doubleheader Wednesday afternoon.
In game one, the Wildcats could not gain the runs, losing 1-4.
White pitched for ACU gaining one strikeout and seven hits. Miranda Lista gave the Wildcats their only run by a solo home run to left field.
In game two, ACU turned up the competition and secured the win 8-2.
Holman-Mansell tallied eight strikeouts and five hits, gaining her seventh win of the season.
The Wildcats started off strong in the first inning and then hit high gear in the seventh, pulling away from Tulsa.
The Wildcats head home to take on Tarleton for their third conference play series on Friday at 6 p.m. and a doubleheader on Saturday at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. at Poly Wells Field.
