After having won seven of their last nine games, the Jags wanted to maintain momentum going into the week with three doubleheaders in five days.
The playoffs are arriving at the beginning of May. These upcoming games will decide who gets in and who goes home.
Games against Texas A&M University-Kingsville Javelinas, Texas College Steers and Jarvis Christian College Bulldogs are important because two of the three doubleheaders are in conference play.
Doubleheader vs. Texas A&M University-Kingsville March 29
The Jags couldn’t find a spark during their matchup against the Javelinas.
The Jags were held to two runs on five hits in both games.
The Javelinas’ high-powered offense had 29 runs on 28 hits in both games. Their stellar pitching shut down the Jags all afternoon.
Both games ended in five innings — a bad sign for any team — but there were still four games left in the week to get back into the win column.
Doubleheader vs. Texas College Steers April 1
Game 1:
In this game, the Jags came out fast to control the momentum.
Junior second baseman Peyton Vasquez singled to left, then stole second to get into scoring position.
Next, freshman catcher Jordan Ramos singled to left, advancing Vasquez to third.
Ramos stole second, then designated player Julia Pinzon drew a walk, which loaded the bases.
Junior right fielder Britney Garcia singled to left-center and brought in Vasquez to score while moving Pinzon to second and Ramos to third.
Then freshman pitcher Karina Guzman drove in Ramos for the second run of the inning.
In the fourth inning, Vasquez singled to center, then stole second to get in scoring position.
Ramos hit a single that let Vasquez score.
In the next at-bat, Pinzon hit a two-run home run to left field to extend the lead.
The Jags put up two more insurance runs in the next two innings to run away with the win.
Guzman and pitcher Ryanne Limon held the Steers to two hits with no runs allowed.
Final score: 7-0
Game 2:
The offensive outburst carried into this second game as the Jags got off to A fast start against the Steers.
Vasquez started off the bottom of the inning with a single, then she stole second to get the Jags into scoring position.
Ramos followed up by singling to right field, which allowed Vasquez to score.
Pinzon drew a walk, moving Ramos to second. Guzman then singled up the middle to load the bases.
Junior center fielder Vanessa Garces hit a double to right-center that scored Pinzon and Ramos.
The offensive attack was not letting up as sophomore catcher Madeline Arellano drove in Guzman with a single to left field, which advanced Garces to third.
Arellano then stole second, followed up by sophomore infielder Riana Tovar drawing a walk and advancing to second on a wild pitch, which allowed Garces to score and put runners on second and third.
Two batters later, freshman third basemen Andrea Ortiz hit a single to right field, which scored Tovar and Arellano.
As the inning ended, the score was 7-0.
The Jags controlled the tempo all game, adding four insurance runs in the third to run away with the game.
Freshman pitcher Bethany Garrett shut down the Steers through five innings with five hits and four strikeouts.
Final score: 11-0
Doubleheader vs. Jarvis Christian College Bulldogs April 2
Game 1:
For the third straight game, the Jags got off to a fast start in the first inning.
Ramos drew a walk on a full count, then Pinzon singled to center to get runners on first and second.
Garza then hit a sacrifice bunt to move runners to second and third.
Later, Garces hit a triple down the right-field line to score Ramos and Pinzon, to take an early lead.
The Bulldogs responded by scoring two runs of their own in the top of the second because of costly errors by the Jags’ defense
In the third, Pinzon reached second on a double to left field. Then Garza drew a walk.
Garces then reached on a fielder’s choice, which saw Garza advance to second and Pinzon get tagged out at third.
Guzman then singled to left, allowing Garza to score. Garces tried to reach third on the throw home but was thrown out by the catcher.
The score was 3-2.
The Bulldogs matched the Jags by scoring off a double to left field in the top of the fourth.
After a scoreless fifth inning for both teams, the Bulldogs took the lead off a single to left field in the sixth, then two more runs in the top of the seventh to extend their lead by three runs.
In the bottom of the seventh, the Jags weren’t able to spark a run to regain momentum.
The Bulldogs outperformed the Jags to give them the win.
Final score: 6-4
Game 2:
This game proved to be a defensive battle all the way to the end.
Through the first five innings, the game was scoreless. The Jags were held to one hit through five innings.
The momentum turned in favor of the Jags in the bottom of the sixth as sophomore right fielder Kameryn Casares singled to left.
Then Ortiz singled down the left-field line, which allowed Casares to third while also advancing Ortiz to second on the throw.
After a pitching change, junior shortstop Gabby Mitchell doubled down the right-field line to bring in Casares and Ortiz.
As the Jags were at the top of the batting lineup, Vasquez singled to shortstop and advanced Mitchell to third.
Vasquez then stole second, with runners occupying second and third as Tovar singled to center, which allowed Mitchell and Vasquez to score.
In the seventh, the Jags were able to close the game with a win.
Garrett had a complete game with zero runs, five hits and seven strikeouts.
Final score: 4-0
Standout Players of the Week:
Bethany Garrett and Jordan Ramos were the standout players of the week. Their contributions on the mound and at the plate helped the Jags win three games in conference play.
- Pitcher Bethany Garrett: 12 IP, 0 ER, 11 SO.
- Catcher/Designated Player Jordan Ramos: .357 batting average, 4 R, 3 RBIs.
The Jags will be on the road for the next three doubleheaders, one of them being against their local rival, Our Lady of the Lake University Saints.
The Saints have been on an 11–game winning streak going into the week.
In the West Division of the conference, the Saints are sitting in first while the Jags are in second.
Going forward, Winning games will be important for the confidence of this two-year-old program.
For more information and news about A&M-San Antonio’s softball team, visit their social media account on Twitter, @TamusaSoftball, and Instagram, @Tamusa_softball. Team coverage can be found at @tamusasports on all other social media platforms.
