Wildcats Split Twin Bill With #12 Angelo State

ABILENE - The Abilene Christian softball team settled for a doubleheader split with rival and 12th-ranked Angelo State Tuesday night at Poly Wells Field.

The Wildcats (26-11, 12-7 LSC) used a five-run first inning to beat the Rambelles (35-8, 16-4) in game one, 8-4, but then dropped the nightcap, 7-2, as Angelo State scored four unearned runs in its half of the seventh.

ACU's first four batters of game one all reached on singles, the last of which was a two-run shot by Courtney Flanary over the head of ASU first baseman Holly Vanden Bossche. Kimberly Briggs followed with a walk to reload the bases, and then Megan Brigance made it a 4-0 game with a hit to center.

Lyndi Smith capped the first-inning scoring run with an RBI single against starter Mary Kate McKay (17-4), then later singled and scored a run as part of a three-run fourth that pushed ACU's advantage to 8-0.

The Rambelles began to chip away at the Wildcats' lead in the fifth when DeeshanaLynn Tafiti tatooed a three-run blast off the scoreboard in left field. An inning later they plated an unearned run on Kacie Easley's RBI single to right-center, which made it an 8-4 game.

All the runs were charged to starter Peyton Mosley (10-5), who still won the game despite surrendering four runs on 10 hits in just 5.1 innings pitched.

Caitlyn Crain releived Mosley following Easley's hit but ran into a little trouble of her own in the seventh when ASU put two aboard with one out. But Crain got Amanda Wilhelm to foul out to catcher Erin Gilliland at back stop for the second out, and leadoff hitter Morgan Spearman to end the game on a foul out to left.

Crain (12-4) went on to start game two and was victimized early by home runs from Easley and Lauren Smith that put the Rambelles ahead 3-0 by the end of the third.

ACU, however, would get one back in the third on Courtney Flanary's RBI single, and made it a one-run game in the fifth following Lyndi Smith's sixth home run of the year.

The following inning, it appeared ACU was going to tie the game on a shot to straight away center field by Briggs, but Lauren Smith put her glove up at the last moment to catch the ball a foot in front of the fence.

The score remained in ASU's favor 3-2 heading into the seventh, and Crain was quickly able to get the first two outs, but then an error by the third baseman led to a walk, which led to a three-run blast by Lauren Smith - her second of the game and ninth of the year. Smith's round-tripper made it a 6-2 game, and two batters later Elsamartina Apo added one more run on a RBI single. 

Rambelle starter Claire Molina (18-4) allowed a pinch-hit single to Sarah Martinez  to start the seventh, before recording the next three outs in succession.

ACU returns to action at home this weekend for a three-game series vs. Eastern New Mexico. The Wildcats and Zias play a single game Friday at 7 p.m., and a 12 p.m. doubleheader Saturday.

###

Abilene Christian 8, Angelo State 4 (Apr 10, 2012 at Abilene, TX.) (Game 1)
----------------------------------------------------------------------