With the confidence of a two game lead in the series against Southland rivals Nicholls, the Bobcat softball team had momentum in their favor. However, due to poor hitting from Texas State, the Colonels were able to block the sweep with a 1-0 victory.
With the misty Texas air coming over the field, the game got underway at noon with the Bobcats searching for the sweep. Texas State came into the game at the top of the Southland Conference with a solid record of 16-4 and a 21-15 record overall. However, Nicholls State is a team to be feared with an 11-5 record in Southland play with an 18-11 overall record to brag about. The Colonels were on a five game winning streak after defeating Southern 9-2. The streak came to an end yesterday as Texas State took the first two games in the thrilling series, including a 5 run come back late in the game to secure the second win.
As the game got underway, anybody could have speculated that the misty weather could have an effect on the pitching. However, with Chandler Hall taking the circle as the Southland strikeout leader, Texas State didn't suffer much as she didn’t let the bad weather affect a stellar pitching performance. Hall struck out ten total batters in the contest. With this kind of pitching displayed from Texas State, you would figure a win would come easy for the 'Cats.
However, the Colonels had other plans in mind. Halls excellent pitching was matched by the ERA leader for NSU, Carlee Winkelmann. Winkelmann was able to fan two batters and secured a complete shut out in the 1-0 victory Sunday afternoon. Power hitters for the Bobcats such as Leah Boatright, Haley Lemons, and Chandler Hall were silenced to either one hit or none. Only five Bobcats were able to find a single or double.
Both teams were held scoreless through the first six innings of play, with only five runners combined reaching third base. Nicholls was the first to score with a RBI single delivered by the second baseman Natalie Travasos in the top of the 7th inning, driving in Audrey Wood to put the first run on the board. The one run inning was not matched by the 'Cats, and Texas State dropped the final game of the three game series.
Texas State falls to 16-5 in Southland Conference play while the Nicholls Colonels improved their Southland record to 12-6. Natalie Travasos was the key to the win for Nicholls with her game winning RBI and golden glove style playing at second. She displayed excellent footwork on the field not letting any chances happen for Texas State.
The Bobcats will face North Texas in a doubleheader on April 14 with the first game starting at 2:00 p.m. you can catch live stats updates on txstatebobcats.com and gomeangreen.com. The Bobcats will return to Southland play against UTSA in a three game series starting April 23.
Tyler Thomason, KTSW Sports Staff Writer
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