SAN ANTONIO - The St. Mary's Softball team dropped a pair of Lone Star Conference contests on Sunday afternoon as the Rattlers fell to the No. 23 Angelo State Rambelles. A pair of solo home runs were the difference in a 2-0 loss in game one. The Rattlers came-from-behind in game two, forcing extra innings before eventually falling 8-7 in the second game.
The Rattlers fall to 17-21 overall and 12-14 in league play.
Game One Recap
The Rambelles got on the board early with a two-out solo home run to take a 1-0 lead. In the third, Angelo State added another run via a solo home run.
It was a quite game offensively for the Rattlers as they did not see their first hit fall until the bottom of the fourth inning when
Abigale Carney roped a double off the right field wall. Carney would end up stranded at second as the Rattler trailed 2-0 thru four complete innings.
Alex Moreno started the fifth frame with a leadoff double and would give way to pinch runner,
Katerina McLennan. A sacrifice from
Amber Gonzales moved McLennan to third with just one out. A groundout and a pop out would end the inning with McLennan stranded at third base.
St. Mary's best scoring chance came in the sixth as
Jayme Johns and
Victoria Aldridge reached on singles to start the inning. The next three batters were retired in order, leaving the potential game-tying runs stranded on the bases.
Reba Reyes drew a two-out walk in the seventh, bringing the tying run to the plate in pinch hitter,
Lauren Garcia. Garcia popped a 2-1 pitch up on the infield that was handled by the Rambelle shortstop to end the game.
Game Two Recap
The second game of the day between the Rattlers and Rambelles was an exciting one that included a combined 15 runs on 17 hits.
Angelo State plated two runs in the top of the first but the Rattlers offense responded with two of their own to even the game. Aldridge drew a four-pitch walk to bring Moreno to the dish with one away. Moreno turned around a first-pitch fastball and sent it over the left field wall for a two-run shot, her seventh of the season.
The Rambelles regained the lead in the third with a pair of runs but the Rattlers answered again with two in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game at four. Carney took the first pitch of the inning off the right field fence for a stand-up double to get things going. Carney advanced to third on a groundout, bringing Gonzales to the plate with two gone. Gonzales singled through the left side to score Carney. Garcia ripped a double into the gap, allowing Gonzales to score from first and tie the game at four.
Two St. Mary's fielding errors in the seventh aided the Rambelles in scoring three runs to take a 7-4 advantage.
Down to their final three outs, Johns started what would be a three-run rally as she was hit by a pitch. Moreno delivered a single up the middle to put runners at first and second with just one out. Carney drew a walk to load the bases and bring the game-winning run to the plate.
Ericka Gomez hit what appeared to be a routine ground ball to second base but the Rambelles mishandled it, allowing St. Mary's to score two runs, making it 7-6.
Tiffany Licon put a ball in play to shortstop and beat it out, allowing Carney to score and tie the game at seven,
Ericka Gomez was thrown out trying to go first-to-third on the play, sending the game into extra innings.
The Rambelles manufactured a run in the top of the ninth to take an 8-7 advantage. St. Mary's ran out of magic as they were retired in order in the home half of the ninth to end the game.
The Rattlers will return to action on Thursday as they will host Our Lady of the Lake University in their final non-conference contest of the season. Games are scheduled for 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. at The Softball Field.
