SAN ANTONIO – The Trinity University softball team battled in two tough games against sixth-ranked Washington University-St. Louis on Friday afternoon, losing 6-5 in the opener and then tying 3-3 in the second game.
The Tigers (10-3-1) and the Bears (12-1-1) were deadlocked when the second game was called due to travel considerations for Wash U. Trinity was held hitless until the sixth inning of game one and trailed 6-1 heading into the final two frames. The Tigers scored four runs in the final two innings to pull within one but left the tying run at third to fall just short. In the second game, Wash U took a 3-0 lead after the first two frames, but Trinity battled back to tie things up with a three-run fourth inning that held at the end.
Josephine Koelewyn (Reno, Nev. / Academy of Arts Careers and Technology) took the loss in the opening game and fell to 7-1 this season. She allowed five runs on nine hits over 3.2 innings to start the game, but only two of those runs were earned.
Jordan Arce (Thousand Oaks, Calif. / Thousand Oaks) allowed an unearned run in 1.0 hitless innings of relief, while
Cameron Bishop (Austin, Texas / Austin) finished the game by retiring all seven batters she faced over the final 2.1 innings.
Ella Whitacre (Roanoke, Texas / Byron Nelson) went 1-for-3 with two runs scored in game one, breaking up the no-hitter in the sixth.
Hannah Boudreaux (Pearland, Texas / Shadow Creek) also went 1-for-3 and drove in two runs in the game.
Koelewyn also started game two and allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits, but was relieved by
Megan Kriechbaum (Cedar Hills, Utah / Pleasant Grove) after the first batter of the third inning. Kriechbaum pitched four shutout innings to finish off the game, allowing just three hits and striking out five batters. Whitacre once again broke up the no-hitter in game two and went 1-for-3 with a run scored.
Hannah Flores (San Antonio, Texas / Taft) made the most of her only hit of the game, launching a game-tying home run over the wall in left field to finish 1-for-3 with two RBI. The Tigers were limited to just three hits in the game and the other went to Boudreaux, who also finished 1-for-3 with a run scored.
The Rundown
Wash U started the game with a four-hit first inning and quickly took a 2-0 lead over the Tigers. Whitacre drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the inning, then stole second, moved to third on a groundout, and then scored on another groundout to get on the scoreboard to make it a 2-1 game after the first inning. The Bears snagged two more runs in the second on an error by the Tigers and Trinity's offense didn't have another baserunner until the fifth inning. Wash U continued to add to its lead with unearned runs in the fourth and fifth innings to take the lead to 6-1.
Whitacre slashed a one-out single up the middle in the bottom of the sixth and Boudreaux followed with an RBI double on the next pitch to trim the lead to 6-2. Bishop kept the Tigers in it by shutting down the Wash U offense and Trinity rallied in the seventh.
Mariana Garcia (Goodyear, Ariz. / Canyon View) singled to open the inning, then Koelewyn also got a hit to put runners at the corners. After an infield single by
Hayden Del Toro (Cypress, Texas / Cy Woods) loaded the bases with no outs, pinch-hitter
Quincy Basarowich (Calgary, Canada / Memorial) was hit by a pitch to score another run.
Angela Baltzell (Antioch, Calif. / Freedom) made it 6-4 with her single that followed and the bases were still loaded with no outs. Wash U threw the runner at third out at home on a fielder's choice for the first out, then Boudreaux lofted a sac fly to right to make it 6-5 with two on and two outs. The Bears escaped with the win after inducing a groundout to end the game, stranding the winning run at second.
The second game started like the first for Wash U, scoring three runs in the first two innings and taking advantage of two more Trinity mistakes – a wild pitch on a strikeout and a throwing error. The Tiger offense was retired in order the first three innings, then Whitacre broke up the no-hitter again with a single up the middle. A hit by Boudreaux put runners at the corner and
Carsyn Lee (Flower Mound, Texas / Flower Mound) broke up the shutout with a sac fly to right field. Flores then smashed a two-run home run to left to tie the game. The Bears got out of the inning without any more damage, though, as Trinity stranded two runners. With time running out on the game as Wash U had to catch a plane, Lee walked to lead off the sixth and put the potential winning run on base. The Tigers couldn't do anything after that, though, and the game ended in a tie.
Up Next
Trinity will host Tufts University (MA) in a St. Patrick's Day doubleheader on Tuesday evening, beginning at 5:00 p.m.
