NM State Aggies vs UMKC Roos Softball Game 1, 4-27-19

I feel like I’m about to start writing War & Peace.  I’m writing this with a much heavier heart than I thought I’d be.  I addressed the Kayla Green situation, which I really don’t know anything for sure about, in the preceding post.  There’s still plenty to talk about with this double header against UMKC and then some.

Today was hot, bright, and sunny.  It wasn’t terrible, but Ron brought an umbrella for the game.  I sat in his shade with a rally towel unfashionably under hat protecting my neck and ears.  Before the games, we went to What-a-burger and I did finally get my barbeque chicken strip sandwich.  (It was delicious.)  Being way early again, we went to PQ Treats and I had a very sensible cheesecake and cherry Frozen Tornado (as opposed to what I ordered last time which took me two days to finish). 

I was glad to be able to watch softball without any cross-scheduling with baseball at least.  I wasn’t ready to say “Goodbye” to the seniors, though.  Just to make it worse, this wasn’t going to be actual their final home game.  I wasn’t going to be able to attend the games against Texas Tech next week.  Further, the WAC Tournament wasn’t going to be here either this year (and I won’t get to see the WAC Girl again).  So, I wasn’t entirely enthusiastic (and this was before I found out Kayla wasn’t there). 

A great crowd came in for the game.  Some enterprising fans brought in collapsible pavilions and put them up at the top of the stands for shade.  Some kids had bubble guns, which caused occasional waves of bubbles to float through the crowd.  The Aggies were out playing hacky in the field.  They were wearing pink socks for SIDS awareness to support a former Aggie player’s organization.  (She’d lost a baby from it.)  The girls had a bit of a matador-look from the socks.  Alexis D'Ambrosio, catcher for the Roos, was rather eye-catching with her serious braids.  She was also dancing a lot on field to the music.  The Roos had a bunch of stickers on their helmets.  I think they were for good play, but I didn’t get a good look at them.

The Aggies clapped and sang along with the school fight song played before the game.  Senior Kennedy Johnson’s mom sang a stirring Anthem and finished with a “Go Aggies!”  Caity Szczesny did a cartwheel when introduced.  I was a bit confused by the starters’ introductions.  Pitcher Analise de la Roca was batting for herself.  KJ was in at DP.  Brandy Hernandez was in at left field, but not batting for herself. 

UMKC had a drum corps going in their dugout in the first.  Analise gave up a leadoff double and a walk, but got three flyouts for the inning.  Jeanelle Medina led off for the Aggies in the bottom and singled.  The centerfielder had trouble picking it up and Jeanelle went to second.  I was talking Danny behind homeplate at this time.  Kelsey Horton came up and was hit hard enough that I nearly felt it.  Ouch!  Victoria Castro singled them in next. 

Recounting the rest of the inning would be tedious.  Macy Hornosky pitched to all nine Aggies in the lineup, giving up seven runs, and only getting one out.  (There was also another error, which the official scorer didn’t acknowledge.)  DJ Cannon, the DP, came in in relief.  Wow, what a name!  The bubble kids started singing along to a cowboy rap song during the break.  I had never heard it before.  I’m such a boomer.  Madason Shaw (that’s the way she spells it) made a great play at third to finally end the inning.  7-0 Aggies.

Disaster occurred in second in front of me and Ron.  A fan’s umbrella malfunctioned and was destroyed.  Trust me, this was bad timing with that late afternoon sun beating down.  With the wind dying down a bit, DJ Cannon (I can’t get over how cool that name is) came up and hit a two-run homer.  She’s not very big, but DJ packs a punch.  7-2 Aggies.  The Aggies went down in order in the second.  Tori hit one foul that almost hit the third baseline camera man, who didn’t flinch.  Another foul went into the parking lot and a fan behind me reported that it hit a car.  Tori, your at bats need to be dangerous to the other team, not to the people watching.

Sydney Garcia led off the third with a monster solo home run for the Roos.  That might have been the biggest blast I’ve seen here, as the ball cleared the entire tree screen to right center.  7-3 Aggies, but I wasn’t worried yet.  The next batter walked.  On the following batter, Analise deflected the ball.  Jeanelle stayed with the ball, got it, and then dove to tap the base for the force.  There was an attempted steal after.  Catcher Nikki Butler’s throw seemed like it hit the batter’s helmet.  The runner advanced to third.  I’m still not sure how that wasn’t interference or a dead ball.  Madason Shaw made another great play at third to start the bottom.  KJ hit one hard, but to the deepest part of center and the park held it in. 

The kids were singing out Gangnam Style during the break.  This would bring up the topic of K-Pop later in the night.  I showed Ron some BTS and Blackpink at my apartment afterward.  I don’t think he knew what to make of the all hot-girl group, Blackpink.  He surprisingly liked BTS.  He thought they were catchy and talented and had an obvious appeal to 14 year-old girls.  Wow, these guys really must be good to appeal to me and Ron.   

Analise was taken out after throwing one ball to the opening batter of the fourth.  Ron thought she might have been dehydrated.  He had seen her gulping down water between innings.  Coach Rodolph didn’t even talk to her, she just went to the ump and Analise went straight to the dugout.  Chloe Rivas came in.  She got a groundout, but the next batter got a dribbler for an infield hit.  After a walk and a strikeout, a hit loaded the bases.  Bre Hunter came up and made a nice, easy slap stroke at a pitch.  It seemed like it should have been a single, but ended up being a line drive grand slam home run to left.  Suddenly, we were tied at seven. 

Jeanelle singled and Kelsey doubled, but the Aggies didn’t score in the bottom of the fourth.  The kids in the crowd went crazy for the hat and shirt toss between innings.  Chloe gave up a leadoff double and then a single to start the fifth.  Analise, presumably rehydrated, came back in.  She walked her first batter to load the bases.  Mya Felder made a great play on a liner at third and almost doubled off the runner there.  Analise got a strikeout, but hit the next batter to drive in a run, 8-7 Roos.  Analise came back with a great strikeout.  She completely fooled the batter with a couple of offspeeds to leave the bases loaded.

Mya worked a walk to begin the bottom of the fifth.  Keala Brown pinch ran for her and stole second.  KJ singled her in to tie the score.  The centerfielder dropped a shallow flyball by Analise and nearly doubled off KJ, who was erased anyway by a fielder’s choice.  With two on, there’s Jeanelle again.  She slapped a double to drive in Analise and Sarai Mejia.  10-7 Aggies.

We’re not done yet.  Bre Hunter led off with a double in the sixth.  Samaria Diaz came in for the next batter.  She got an out, but loaded the bases on a single and a walk.  Nikki tried a pickoff throw to third that went into left field and Bre scored, 10-8.  Caity Szczesny came in as a defensive replacement this inning in left field.  I kind of have to question the coach here.  While Caity is taller, I doubt anyone, including the pitchers, have a stronger, more accurate arm than Brandy.  It was a close play at the plate.  Brandy would have got her.  A drunk fan was completely losing it behind us, but thankfully, Sam closed out the inning with a pair of strikeouts.

The drunk fan started hollering for the giveaways to be thrown to our side of the stands more.  He might have had a point there.  In the bottom of the sixth, after several close calls by other batters, Tori finally jacked one out to center for a solo shot.  Mya and KJ both doubled, which produced another run.  12-10 Aggies. 

The PA sang his song during the break, Pharrel’s Happy.  He was having a good time.  He did that last year during a game in the tournament.  Sam gave up a double and two singles in the seventh, which produced another run, but she actually struckout the side for the inning.

It took seven innings and three hours, but Aggies win 12-10!  Let’s hand it to Bre Hunter on the Roos for going 3 for 4 with 5 RBI’s and a grand slam home run.  For the Aggies, thank you, Samaria Diaz for nailing this one down with five strikeouts.  Offensively, Victoria Castro drove in three runs and a home run.  Kennedy Johnson, with a Senior Day start, went 3 for 4 with 3 RBI’s.  How about Jeanelle Medina?  Your leadoff hitter went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI’s.  She is excelling in that one slot.

On to Game 2.