NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State used three late-game doubles on a cold and misty Saturday to pick up its first Southland Conference series win of the season.
Down by two going into the bottom of the sixth after five scoreless innings of work from both starting pitchers, a leadoff hustle double from
Bailie Ragsdale ignited the Demon dugout for a three-run rally to get the come-from-behind 3-2 win.
The late-game theatrics and offense from both teams were a stark contrast to the first five inning that were dominated by
Maggie Darr and A&M-Commere's Julia Sanchez.
Coming of 6 1/3 innings of shutout work in the game two win on Friday night, Darr followed with five more shutout innings on Saturday with more soft contact and five more zeros on the scoreboard. The Lions managed just three hits through the first five inning of the game accounting for their only baserunners during that time.
"Maggie did great last night and again today," catcher
Ashlyn Walker said. "We made a few adjustments with her curveball, really trying to get that inside on the hitters. She stuck to the plan and trusted her spin. It's a lot of fun for me behind the plate when the pitchers are spinning it like that. I love to celebrate them and that's really the best part of the game for me."
The NSU batters however had an equally a tough time at the plate against Sanchez, who worked her way around seven hits in the first game on Friday but allowed just three through five innings on Saturday.
The scorching hot bat of
Sophia Livers accounted for two of the three Demon hits, an infield single to start the third and a double that nearly left the ballpark in the fifth. Livers was left standing in scoring position to end both of those innings.
The only blemish to Darr's weekend came in the sixth inning after a walk, her only one of the game, followed by back-to-back singles, both in two-strike counts, brought in the first run of the game.
Kenzie Seely came in from the bullpen to get out of the inning but not before a seeing-eye single brought in a second run to give Commerce the late 2-0 edge.
A flare in to shallow right center field off the bat of Ragsdale, along with her speed, provided the spark the Demons needed for the comeback win.
Tristin Court traded places with Ragsdale on a screaming double to the base of the wall in left center adding fuel to the rally.
Kennedy Reynolds tied the game two batters later on an RBI single up the middle bringin in Court from third.
Mia Liscano beat out a potential double play ball that would have ended the inning, setting things up for the clutch two-out double that put NSU ahead.
Ashlyn Walker hammered the second pitch she saw off the top of the wall in left center scoring Liscano easily from first on the play.
"I just trusted the game plan we had going into those at bats," Walker said. "After the first pitch I was just looking for something good to swing at and just feeling free. No pressure on myself and trusted my swing."
The Demons hit three of the their four double in the game in the sixth inning and had five of their eight hits on the day, finally getting to Sanchez.
"I think we had been letting her off the hook a little bit this weekend and today," head coach
Lacy Prejean said. "I felt like we weren't swinging at strikes so in that inning to take until we got a strike and that's what we did. Bailie started us off and we just passed the bat down and got timely hitting. We made her bring the ball in the zone and we took advantage."
Seely used the offensive momentum to produce an emphatic shut down inning in the seventh with a pair of strikeouts and a soft ground ball to first to end the game and pick up her career-best eighth win of the season.
"Kenzie came in and did exactly what she was supposed to, throw strikes," Prejean said. "They got a cheap little hit off her but in that last inning was three up, three down with strikes. It was fun to be a part of."
Six different players had hits in the game for NSU led by Livers' second 3-for-3 day at the plate on the weekend. She finished the series going 8-for-9 with a triple and two doubles.
