Texas A&M eliminates South Carolina softball from SEC Tournament with walk-off win in quarterfinals
Last season, the South Carolina softball team made a deep run in the SEC Tournament.
After entering the tournament as a No. 10 seed, the Gamecocks picked up an extra-inning win over the Texas A&M in the first round. Upset victories over Georgia and Auburn followed, allowing South Carolina to reach the SEC championship.
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The Gamecocks took their first step towards repeating the feat with an 8-4 win over Mississippi State Wednesday night. But this year, the Aggies would stop the underdogs in their tracks.
No. 11 seed South Carolina was looking for another upset win over No. 3 seed Texas A&M in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals Friday afternoon. It ultimately would not get it, as the Aggies won 3-2 in dramatic fashion to advance to the next round.
How it happened
South Carolina’s (34-22, 8-16 SEC) bats got off to a quick start, just like they did against the Bulldogs in the first round. Denver Bryant, who went 4-for-4 in Wednesday’s game, led off the game by reaching first base on an error.
Riley Blampied doubled to right-center field one batter later, giving the Gamecocks a prime opportunity to take an early lead. But Bryant, an aggressive baserunner, was beat by a time throw to home plate and called out.
That didn’t stop South Carolina from eventually finding a way to pull ahead, though. Jen Cummings helped Blampied score on a two-out RBI single to left-center field to give the Gamecocks a 1-0 lead.
South Carolina had an opportunity to build on its lead even further after Kianna Jones earned a walk to load the bases late in the inning. Bre Warren, facing her former team, was unable to bring a runner home to score by striking out.
Texas A&M (40-12, 15-9 SEC) provided a quick answer in the bottom of the frame to tie the game. Trinity Cannon connected on the first pitch of her at bat and launched a deep home run to left field to tie the game at one run apiece.
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Both teams went scoreless in the second inning, but the Gamecocks would re-take the lead in the top of the third. Zoe Laneaux’s first hit of the game found itself over the center-field wall to increase the Gamecocks’ lead to 2-1.
South Carolina and Texas A&M’s bats went silent over the next three innings without any change in the score. Starting pitchers Sage Mardjetko and Emiley Kennedy engaged in an old-fashioned pitchers duel for much of the afternoon, keeping both teams close.
Texas A&M threatened to tie the game once again in each of the final three innings. The Aggies’ most dangerous attempt came in the seventh, when it the bases loaded with one out.
After coming up short in the fifth and sixth innings, Texas A&M would eventually be rewarded. Koko Wooley hit a deep fly ball that soared over Blampied’s head and connected with the center-field wall. The hit brought both the game-tying and game-winning runs home to score.
Two observations
Mardjetko impresses in SEC Tournament debut — Mardjetko has been one of South Carolina’s major contributors in the circle during her freshman year. Heading into this contest, she had a 2.53 ERA and struck out 104 batters in 108 innings.
Mardjetko delivered one of her most impressive performances of the season when the team needed it most. She went six innings and allowed just one run on five hits. Although she walked four batters, she punched out nine more and played an important role in mitigating Texas A&M’s offense for much of the game.
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Vawter struggles with command in the seventh — Vawter was brought into the game in the seventh inning after Mardjetko led off the frame with a walk.
From that point onward, Vawter struggled to locate pitches and find the plate. Only 10 of her 20 pitches were called for strikes. And she gave up two hits, one of which was the game-winner.
Key stat
20 strikeouts — South Carolina and Texas A&M hitters struck out 10 times each in this low-scoring affair. Margins are very thin in games like these, and this metric goes to show how important pitching was for both teams.
Turning point
Texas A&M ultimately scored two runs in the seventh inning to win the game. But it wasn’t until the fifth inning that it earned a hit with a runner on base. The Aggies’ close call in that frame gave them the momentum they needed to earn the victory.
Up next
With the loss, South Carolina was eliminated from SEC Tournament contention. The Gamecocks will learn their NCAA Tournament fate during the tournament’s selection show, which will air Sunday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
