Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 RICHARDSON, TX (04.09.13) - The UT Dallas softball team dropped below .500 in American Southwest Conference East Division play, but is still hanging on the final playoff spot from the division despite a pair of home losses to No. 13-ranked East Texas Baptist Tuesday evening.
The Comets (now 15-12-11 overall, 6-8 ASC East) sit fourth in the ASC East with six league games remaining and can actually lock up their first playoff berth since 2005 by the weekend. UTD can lock up a spot with a sweep at LeTourneau Thursday and three wins in a four-game home series with Mississippi College over the weekend.
East Texas Baptist improved to 27-7 overall and 15-3 in ASC East play with the wins and currently sits in second place in the division.
The visiting Tigers got on the scoreboard quickly as lead-off hitter Alyssa Romero opened the game with a wind-aided home run, her sixth of the season, over the centerfield fence. The Comets kept the game close throughout the following innings, making several defensive plays that kept UTD from adding to their lead, but suffered their third shutout of the season, 1-0.
UTD did not get a runner past first base until the 6th inning when
Rachel Riley moved
Stephanie Harris with a sac bunt, but a deep fly out by
Avery McHugh ended the Comets' threat. In the 7th, UTD again got a base runner to second base after a lead-off single by
Brittanie Knowles, followed by a sac bunt by
Hannah Creech, but a strike out and a great defensive play ETBU leftfielder Sarah Clements on a foul ball at the fence ended the game.
Jeni Olbeter (8-7) was handed the loss, giving up one run on eight hits. She did not record a strikeout and walked one Tiger. Knowles finished the game 2-for-3.
GAME 2 - ETBU 5, UTD 2
The Tigers again opened the scoring in the 1st, but UTD answered in the bottom of the frame and held ETBU in check until a three-run 5th frame by the guests, lifting the Tigers to a 5-2 victory.
Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the 1st, McHugh knotted the game with a two-out blooper down the right-field line, scoring
Jordan Bratcher from third. After a scoreless 2nd, ETBU regained the lead in 3rd after taking advantage of back-to-back walks to load the bases with no outs. Clements plated Lya Swaner with a fielder's choice to open a potentially big inning, but
Megan Aragones limited the Tigers to just one run after inducing a short fly out and a ground out to end the inning.
ETBU then plated three runs on three hits and a hit batter to grab a 5-1 advantage in the 5th. Creech tried to start a rally in the bottom of the 6th with a lead-off double down the left-field line, the Comets' only extra-base hit of the doubleheader, and scored on a
Morgan Anderson infield single, but that would be all the offense UTD would muster. The Comets went down in order in the 7th.
Aragones (3-4) was handed the loss, allowing five runs on seven hits. She also did not record a strikeout, but walked four and hit two Tigers. Harris was 3-for-4 while McHugh, Creech and Anderson each multi-hit games as the Comets collected 10 hits as a team.
