LAKE CHARLES, La. – The middle stretch of the Cowgirl Classic saw the Lamar University softball team split their two games on Saturday afternoon. Stellar freshmen performances carried the Cardinals to a win against Tarleton State, but they were unable to overcome a fast start by Tennessee State despite two home runs.
Five Cardinals got hits in Game 1 with
Shenita Tucker and
Jayne Sepulveda each notching doubles.
Emilee LaRue secured her first hit of the season while
Veronica Harrison and
Kalyn Xayaseng also got on the scoresheet with Harrison's two-run RBI single being the difference in the game.
Emma Wardlaw was victorious in her collegiate debut going the distance allowing just one unearned run on seven hits with no walks and four strikeouts.
Trinity Brandon and Sepulveda both went yard in Game 2 as their home runs provided all the scoring for the Cardinals. Tucker and Sepulveda each had two hits while
Makenzie Wright and
Brooke Davis each picked up their first hits of the season.
Fadwa Ben Karim got the start for the Cardinals on the mound allowing six runs on five hits with two walks in three innings.
Madison Guidry made her Big Red debut in four innings of relief allowing three runs on five hits with a walk and two strikeouts.
Game 1: LU 3, Tarleton State 1
Both teams were locked in a pitcher's duel early on through four scoreless innings. LU would find their breakthrough in the fifth, however, as Harrison recorded her first two career RBI to give the Cardinals the lead in the top half of the inning. A leadoff triple by the Texans followed by an RBI single would see them cut the deficit in half in the bottom of the fifth. Wardlaw, making her Cardinal debut on the mound, was able to hold the damage to one while also working through the middle of the order in the sixth inning with ease.
Big Red would tack on an insurance run in the top of the seventh as Tucker scored on a wild pitch after her two-out double. The Texans were able to get runners at the corners in their last stand to make things interesting, but Wardlaw got the final groundout to seal the victory.
Game 2: Tennessee State 9, LU 5
Tennessee State jumped out a big lead with a five-run second inning spurred by a three-run double. LU answered back as Brandon knocked a two-run homer in the bottom of the inning for her first hit of the season. The Tigers wouldn't let up, however, as they tacked on three more runs in the fourth and another in the fifth to extend their lead. Sepulveda continued her fast start to the season by mashing a three-run shot in the fifth inning to cut into the deficit, but the Cardinal rally would ultimately fall short.
LU will finish out the Cowgirl Classic with chance to avenge their loss against Tennessee State tomorrow at 11 a.m.
