ROME, GEORGIA - Trinity Softball splits with nationally-ranked Berry.
The Tigers (17-7-1) took game two of the series 9-3 after dropping game one 4-3. Mariana Garcia (Goodyear, Arizona / Canyon View) had a breakout day, going a staggering 6-6 with three RBIs and a run scored. Carsyn Lee (Flower Mound, Texas / Flower Mound) also was solid at the plate, collecting four hits and three RBIs.
Game One - Trinity 3, Berry 4
Berry scored first with a run in the bottom of the first.
Trinity answered in the top of the second. Josephine Koelewyn (Reno, Nevada / Academy of Arts Careers and Technology) started the inning with a double to left center, and Hannah Flores (San Antonio, Texas / Taft) reached on an error. After Hayden Del Toro (Cypress, Texas / Cy Woods) moved both runners up with a sacrifice bunt, Mariana Garcia drove a double just past the outstretched glove of the third baseman to bring home Flores and Koelewyn and take an early lead. Ella Whitacre (Roanoke, Texas / Byron Nelson) then laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Garcia to third, but Berry escaped the inning without further damage.
Berry regained control in the bottom of the second and held the lead until Trinity broke through again in the sixth. Samantha Tagawa (Agoura Hills, California / Agoura) opened the inning with a double down the right-field line and moved to third on a wild pitch. Koelewyn then reached on a Berry error, allowing Tagawa to score and tied the game back up. Later in the inning, Del Toro reached on an error and Garcia followed with a single to put runners on the corners, but Berry got out of the jam before Trinity could score again.
Berry retook the lead in the bottom of the sixth. The Tigers threatened in the top of the seventh but left runners on second and third.
Game Two - Trinity 9, Berry 3
After a quiet first four innings, the Tiger bats finally broke through in the fifth.
Jordan Arce (Thousand Oaks, California / Thousand Oaks) started the rally with a single to left center and then stole second. Garcia followed with an RBI double to center field to bring Arce home, and Whitacre kept the pressure on with a double down the left-field line that moved Garcia to third. After two outs, Lee came through with a two-run single to left field that scored Whitacre and Garcia to put the Tigers in front 3-0.
After shutting down Berry in the bottom half, the Tigers added on in the sixth. Koelewyn opened the inning with a solo home run to left field. Del Toro followed with a single, stole second, and moved to third on a wild pitch. Arce then brought Del Toro home with a sacrifice fly to center. Whitacre later singled on a bunt, and Hannah Boudreaux (Pearland, Texas / Shadow Creek) drove in another run with a single to right field that scored Arce. With the bases loaded, Carsyn Lee drew a walk to force in Whitacre and capped a four-run inning.
Trinity added two more runs in the seventh. Koelewyn reached on an error to start the inning, and Del Toro followed with a single. Mariana Garcia later singled up the middle to load the bases, and with two outs, Boudreaux delivered again with a two-run double to right center that scored Del Toro and Koelewyn.
Berry scored once in the third, added another in the sixth on a wild pitch, and made things interesting in the bottom of the seventh with a two-run home run.
Up Next
The Tigers will conclude the series with Berry tomorrow at 9:30 AM (ET).
