BEAUMONT, Texas - Down by a run in the final inning, Lamar University (5-1) rallied to score twice to win 3-2 over Missouri State (1-6) thanks to a walk-off single from
Sicily Windham Friday at the LU Softball Complex. After two wins in the I-10 Border Classic, the Cardinals have won five of their first six games to continue the best start in program history.
Big Red got a hit each from
Trinity Brandon (HR),
Jayne Sepulveda,
Veronica Harrison, and Windham (RBI) while
Raigan Brannon delivered the game-tying RBI.
Mallory Pitre got the start for the Cardinals in the circle but lasted 2.1 innings allowing two runs on five hits and striking out two batters.
Emma Wardlaw (4.2 IP) conceded two hits and tallied a pair of strikeouts in relief to earn her first win of the season.
In the first two innings, the Cardinals made key defensive plays to leave MSU runners stranded. This included a first-inning double play from Brandon and a diving catch by
Cala Wilson in the second on a bunt attempt. The Bears did get on the board first in the top of the third with a solo home run and an RBI single to lead 2-0.
Big Red was held without a hit until the bottom of the fourth, when Brandon connected on the first pitch she saw for a two-out homer to end the shutout. Wardlaw retired the side in the fifth and sixth innings but ran into trouble in the seventh after the first two MSU hitters reached base. Three defensive outs kept the Bears from breaking the game open and the Cardinals came up to bat in the bottom of the seventh trailing 2-1.
Sepulveda led off with a single and advanced to third on a one-out double by Harrison, putting the winning runners in scoring position. After Wilson was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Brannon tied the game with a groundout to short that scored Sepulveda. This brought Windham to the plate, and it would take only three pitches for the freshman to come through in the clutch with a single to center and hand LU the one-run victory.
Saturday sees the Cardinals going up against Tulsa and No. 6 Tennessee, but with a change of times due to inclement weather later in the day. LU will take on the Golden Hurricane at 9:30 a.m., before facing the Volunteers at noon.
