Northwestern State Defeats A&M-Corpus Christi 3-1 in Back Draw
Southland Conference
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FRISCO, Texas – Top-seeded Northwestern State got a 3-1 victory over sixth-seeded Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Thursday afternoon in the Southland Conference Softball Tournament back draw opening round at the Lady Demon Diamond in Natchitoches, La. The Lady Demons advance to the Southland tournament back draw second round with the win.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second after a solo home run over left center field from second-team all-conference selection sophomore catcher Brittney Morse.
Northwestern State tied up the score in the top of the third after a sacrifice fly into center field by sophomore catcher Kellye Kincannon that brought in freshman infielder Hailee Rhodes from third.
In the top of the fourth the Islanders made a pitching change as sophomore Liz Carter came in for junior Stephanie Flores.
The Lady Demons put another runner in scoring position in the top of the fourth as sophomore outfielder Brittney Jones advanced to third on a Micayla Sorosiak fly out to center field. However, the Islanders got two quick outs on a foul out and a caught ball down the third-base line.
A&M-Corpus Christi loaded the bases despite having two outs in the bottom of the fourth after sophomore utility player Jessica Mendez hit an infield single. A hard hit ball down the first-base line was snatched for the final out of the inning.
Northwestern State grabbed its first lead of the game after a two-run homer by Kincannon that just barely went over the left center field wall. Both Kincannon and freshman outfielder Sidney Salmans scored, giving the Lady Demons a 3-1 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth the Lady Demons called upon Micaela Bouvier to close the game, relieving Southland Pitcher of the Year Mikayla Brown.
To end the sixth, Northwestern State made a dramatic double play to get the final out of the inning. Junior outfielder Natalie Landry caught a fly out in left field and then threw to Sorosiak at second base to get the Islanders’ Mickayla Cochran out as she was tagging up.
Earning the win for the Lady Demons was pitcher of the year freshman Mikayla Brown, improving her record to 12-3 on the season. The Islanders’ Carter took the loss, falling to 14-18 on the year.
Tournament host and No. 1 seed Northwestern State (34-17, 22-3 Southland) will now face the winner of this afternoon’s matchup between second-seeded McNeese State and No. 4 Southeastern Louisiana in the back draw second round tonight at 6:30 p.m. in Natchitoches.
Southland tournament play continues this afternoon at the Lady Demon Diamond as the Cowgirls take on the Lady Lions the other back draw first-round game of the day.
A&M-Corpus Christi finishes is now eliminated from the tournament and finishes its season with a 20-28-1 overall record.
The Southland title game is slated for a 2 p.m. start Friday with a possibility of second game for the tournament championship. The 11th game would be played in the event an undefeated team lost in the title game forcing a second game for the tournament championship, upholding the double elimination format. Game 11 start time is to be determined.
The winner of the Southland softball tournament receives the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
For more information on the tournament, including a link to
live stats, please visit
Southland.org. For updates and the most current information throughout the tournament please follow the Southland Conference on twitter at SouthlandSports and use the hashtag “SLCSoftball”.
The first nine games of the 2015 Southland Softball Tournament are being streamed live for free on the Southland Conference Digital Network, including
Southland.org/watch and the league’s mobile and tablet apps. The championship round will be an exclusive presentation of ESPN3, available via
WatchESPN.com and the WatchESPN app. Chris Mycoskie, Assistant Commissioner of Television and Electronic Media for the Southland Conference, will handle play-by play for all games. Three-time Southland softball coach of the year and National Fastpitch Coaches Association Hall of Fame member Yvette Girouard will join him for the championship as the color analyst.
Quotes
Northwestern State Head Coach Donald Pickett
On thoughts about the game…
“We were able to have some quality at-bats, work deep counts against their pitchers, and we were seeing some good pitches most of the day. We moved runners with bunts and sacrifice flies, and great baserunning. Kincannon got rewarded for all that hard work wearing down the pitcher, and the kid left one up and Kellye was able to get it out of the park for a big two-run home run.
On Landry’s double play…
“It was an awesome play. Natalie’s been so good down the stretch and she’s really confident. She did an awesome job being able to catch the ball, first, because it was hit on a line, right on the nose. She didn’t panic, caught the ball, was able to do what she wanted to do with it and made a great throw for the double play.”
“We’ve got to continue to play. I told the kids this morning, we’ve got to do it together, and we did a great job of that in this game. We had two pitchers who each threw well. We made plays defensively, we were able to move over runners, and we played softball the way we can. Hopefully we’ll carry that over, continue to get better as we continue to play, and we’ll get right back in this thing.”
Northwestern State Catcher Kellye Kincannon
On what was different about this game…
“The team approached this game differently this morning. Last night we were soooo hyped up that we weren’t ourselves. Coach Pickett told us this morning to stay within ourselves, stay aggressive and stay confident, and I think that’s exactly what we did. We came out the way we’re used to playing, one behind the other, all through the lineup, all through the team.”
On her two-run homer…
“When I hit it, honestly, I didn’t know it was a home run. I was just trying to stay within myself, went with the pitch, and the Outfield Club went wild, so that’s when I knew it was a home run. It was a pretty big play.”
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Head Coach Stephanie Hughes
On today’s result…
“They’re the no 1 seed in the tournament. It’s fitting that they hit a home run on us with how many they hit this season. I’m just really proud of the way our kids came out and fought all weekend.”
On what her three seniors meant to the program…
“They’re the reason we’re here, plain and simple. They’ve set the standard of the kids we bring in here to bring the program where it needs to be. Not only on the field but off – all three have graduated and that’s something we’re extremely proud of. We told the girls in the next three years, we want them to be something that these three can be proud of.”