BEEVILLE, Texas – Blinn College softball was shaky at the beginning of its doubleheader but finished strong in both games to sweep a doubleheader from Coastal Bend College by the scores of 8-3 and 9-1 Saturday afternoon.
The Buccaneers have now won six consecutive conference games and improve to 7-1 in Region XIV play. Blinn also improves to 21-11 overall.
Blinn 8 – Coastal Bend 3
Blinn got off to a slightly slow start but was able to finish strong to beat Coastal Bend in the opener 8-3 behind a pair of RBIs from Shelby Achille.
"After a shaky first few innings, we settled in and took control in the later innings," said Rick Church, Blinn head coach.
Achille led with two RBIs and added a single. Nicole Garcia, Kalli Edwards, Emily Noah, Amy Alexander and Gabriela Gomez each contributed an RBI in the win. Morgan Gray belted three singles and Calli Birch hit two singles in the win.
Colleen Bentke picked up the win in the circle to improve to 12-2 on the season and 4-0 in conference by pitching all seven innings without allowing an earned run on six hits while striking out five.
Blinn was able to strike first as Garcia started the game with a single and then came in to score on a RBI single by Noah for a 1-0 lead. Coastal Bend scored two in the bottom of the first to take a 2-1 lead.
The Buccaneers were able to battle back as Birch started the second with a one-out single and scored on an RBI single by Garcia to tie the game at 2-2. Gray was able to give Blinn the 3-2 lead in the inning after scoring on an error. Coastal Bend scored a single run in the bottom of the second to tie the game back up at 3-3.
That would be all the scoring allowed by the Buccaneers as Blinn went to take back the lead in the fifth inning. Noah started the inning with a single and Abby Olejniczak came on as a pinch runner and scored on a Gomez double to left for a 4-3 lead.
The scoring continued in the sixth as Gray and Garcia both singled to begin the inning and Achille brought both in with a single to right for a 6-3 advantage. Alexander made the score 7-3 with a single to left to cap the scoring in the inning. Edwards was able to add an insurance run in the seventh with a sacrifice fly to center to score Gray for an 8-3 lead that would hold up until the final out.
Blinn 9 – Coastal Bend 1
Blinn played much better in the second game and never trailed in a 9-1 victory over Coastal Bend thanks to three RBIs supplied by Gomez to complete the sweep.
Gomez went 4-for-4 in the second game with all singles to bring in the three runs. Garcia, Edwards, Noah and Alivia Villareal each had an RBI in the win. Katy Sawyer knocked a couple of singles in the win.
Sam Junkin picked up the victory in the second game for her second conference victory of the season by pitching all six innings and allowing just one earned run on four hits while striking out seven.
Villareal was able to get Blinn on the board in the second inning with an RBI ground out for a 1-0 lead. The Buccaneers kept the scoring going in the third inning when Edwards started it off with a single and then came in to score after an RBI single by Noah to left for a 2-0 lead. Gomez made it 3-0 with an RBI single to left and then Sawyer capped the scoring in the inning with an RBI single to right for a 4-0 advantage.
Edwards was able to knock in a run in the fourth inning with a single to left for a 5-0 lead. Garcia later scored on an error for a 6-0 edge in the fourth. Coastal Bend scored its lone run in the bottom of the fourth to get within 6-1.
The Buccaneers looked to close out the game early in the sixth inning as Gray started it with a single and then Garcia doubled to center to score Gray for a 7-1 lead. Gomez capped her impressive game with a two-run single to left for a 9-1 edge that would help Blinn win by the run rule.
Blinn will next face Laredo Community College on the road on Sunday, March 26 for a doubleheader that begins at 11 a.m.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 34 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.
About Blinn College
With an enrollment of 19,422 students, Blinn ranks among the nation's leaders in transferring students to leading four-year universities and has received national recognition for affordable educational excellence. For more information, visit www.blinn.edu.
