CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi softball team delivered a thrilling start to its final home weekend, sweeping a doubleheader from Northwestern State on Friday at Chapman Field highlighted by a walk-off 2-1 victory in a nine-inning opener and a momentum-filled 7-5 comeback in game two to secure the series.
With the wins, the Islanders improved their conference standing and will look to complete the three-game sweep in Saturday's finale at 11 a.m. Afterwards, the Islanders will host a special senior day celebration to honor this year's senior class.
Game 1 // Islanders 2, Northwestern State 1 (9 innings)
A pitcher's duel turned into late-inning drama as the Islanders walked off Northwestern State in the bottom of the ninth.
Neither team scored through the first three innings before Northwestern State struck in the fourth. After a fielding error extended the inning, a two-out RBI single gave the Demons a 1-0 lead.
A&M-Corpus Christi threatened multiple times early but finally broke through in the sixth.
Zoey Stewart worked a leadoff walk and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by
Jada Zepeda.
Mimi Thornton then delivered, ripping a triple to deep left field to tie the game at 1-1.
The Islanders continued to apply pressure late as the game extended into extras. In the ninth,
Erynne Castillo singled to open the frame and stole second before
Karisa Lopez followed with an infield single to put runners on the corners.
Brooke Jones delivered the decisive blow, lining a walk-off single to left field to score Castillo and give the Islanders a 2-1 victory.
Josie Whitehead was dominant in the circle, tossing eight innings and allowing just one unearned run on seven hits.
Holly Ayala earned the win in relief when the Islanders took over, closing the ninth to help set up the walk-off.
Game 2 // Islanders 7, Northwestern State 5
The Islanders carried that energy into game two, using a decisive fourth inning to power past the Demons and clinch the series.
Northwestern State struck first, plating one run in the second and adding two more in the third to take a 3-0 lead. The Demons extended it to 5-1 in the fourth with a pair of RBI hits, but A&M-Corpus Christi responded emphatically in the bottom half.
Lopez drew a walk to start the inning before
Taylor Reyes tripled to right field to cut into the deficit.
Eva Gallegos followed with an RBI single, and after a Zepeda infield hit and a walk drawn by Thornton loaded the bases,
Skylar Heger delivered a two-run single to tie the game.Moments later,
Kayla Santiago capped the rally with a two-run double to left-center, giving the Islanders a 7-5 lead after a six-run inning.
From there, Ayala shut the door again. Entering in relief in the fourth, she limited Northwestern State to two runs across four innings and kept the Demons off the board over the final three frames to secure her second win of the day.
Across the doubleheader, Thornton went 4-for-7 with a triple and two RBIs, including the game-tying hit in game one. Heger totaled four hits and drove in four runs, including a pivotal two-RBI single in the game-two rally and Santiago delivered timely hitting with a two-RBI double in game two. Castillo collected four hits and scored twice, including the game-winning run in the opener while Jones recorded the walk-off RBI in game one and added another RBI in game two.
A&M-Corpus Christi will return to Chapman Field on Saturday morning, aiming to complete the series sweep and cap its final home weekend on a high note.
Saturday, April 18
11 a.m. – Game 3
Stats
ESPN+
Postgame: Senior Day celebration
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