NM State Aggies vs Ball State Cardinals Softball 2-17-18

 

After a brief rest in Ron’s car after the baseball game, we entered the softball stadium next door for the scheduled Aggie game.  We actually came in in the bottom of the seventh of the game between Boston University and Oklahoma, two of the other invitees to the tournament.  While I was in the bathroom, Boston completed a 4-3 win over Oklahoma.  So this was what the cheering was about that we heard while at the ballpark.  Let’s add some context to that score.  That was a win over the two-time defending national champion who was 5-0 this season before this tournament.  I’m not sure how good the Boston program is, but they were real good this afternoon. 

So I missed this game (which I’d already paid for via a full session pass) to essentially watch batting practice at the baseball game.  Of course, there was no way of know that beforehand.  Ron was fairly jocular about yesterday’s softball rainout.  Easy for him.  We both got soaked, but I was out $40 for nothing to this point.  Well, we were here now for this matchup between the Aggies and the Ball State Cardinals.  

Boston and Oklahoma fans left the stands, but Aggie and Ball State fans filled the stadium back up.  It was a really good crowd.  (There was a full house for the preceding game too.)  I noticed Lia Mosher of the volleyball team, and perhaps the softball team, going in.  As a tall and beautiful blonde, she’s hard to miss, even when she’s trying to be incognito wearing a pair of thick frame glasses.  If I’d had any opportunity, I would have loved to have asked her about her flirtation with the softball team.  Out on the field, some of the Aggie girls were dancing while the infield was being dragged.  They also looked super loose doing their pregame ritual. 

During this game and the next game, Ron and I kept listening to Aggie Baseball on the radio.  I did warn Adam Young that we’d be deserting him at the ballpark at some point.  This was Game 2 of their double header with the Towson Tigers.  I scribbled little notes about it, but I was mostly paying attention to the game in front of me.  It was another three-hour 40 minute game like the first one.  It ran until the fifth inning of the next softball game.  My radio actually died before the ending, though Ron was able to finish listening. 

Rather than interrupt the narrative of two other games, I’ll do a quick recap altogether here.  This will not be comprehensive (and may not be entirely correct).  The first two innings were quick and scoreless.  The Tigers struck first with a three-run homer by Richie Palacios.  A balk and a sacrifice brought in a couple of runs for the Aggies to make it 3-2.  In the sixth, Towson added a two-run homer to make it 5-2.  Then the wheels came off.  Suddenly it was 10-2 Tigers with some errors contributing to the rout.  The Aggie bullpen was mentioned as the team’s only obvious question mark for quality.  The Aggies put up a few runs late from a David Bellamy RBI and Mason Fishback driving in three runs with a double.  The final ended up being 11-6 Tigers. 

Without actually watching, it’s difficult to say what happened between this game and preceding one where the Aggies won 24-4.  It’s hard to believe that there’s that much of a drop off in starting pitching after Kyle Bradish and that the Towson pitchers for this game were that much better than the five that were used in the previous game.  This was a bit of a troubling result for the program, but I’ve spent enough space on this.  Let’s get on with the softball.       

Odd things happen in baseball and softball.  In an interview earlier in the week, Coach Kathy Rodolph said that, after Aggies’ two wins against Kentucky, their coach told her that that was the first time in three years anyone had put double digit runs on them.  And the Aggies did it to them twice on the same night.  I thought that the Wildcats might not have prepared well for the Aggies, but they might have been in some genuine shock as the girls started putting up runs on them.   

And I did it again.  I wrote the starting lineups on the wrong scorecards.  I keep getting off on the wrong foot doing this.  The Aggies were the visiting team for this game.  I guess they have to do this to be fair for the tournament.  I wonder if they flip for it beforehand.  We could hear the enthusiasm of the PA while we were at the baseball field earlier.  I’m not sure who it is.  During the first inning, his voice cracked.  I was momentarily concerned about him, but he had no trouble calling this game and the next. 

The girls sang for Rachel Rodriguez, who led off the game.  I think that was all the singing I heard for this game.  After a walk to Fahren Glackin, Kelsey Horton came up third.  The Cardinals had a little team meeting before pitching to her.  That’s some respect.  She grounded into a fielder’s choice.  Victoria Castro came up next and sent a fly ball to deep centerfield, but that was as close as the team came to scoring.  One recurring theme for the weekend for softball was fly balls dying in the outfield.  After the rain on Friday, the air was still heavy and the grass was damp.  Ron noticed that any ball touching the outfield was thrown out and wiped off before being returned to play.  

The crowd was really into it for both teams.  Aggie starter, Samaria Diaz, worked a scoreless first.  In one at bat, she wasn’t able to get to a popup on the infield.  But, she saw the backspin on it and let it roll foul.  Sam was smiling afterward.  Caity Szczesny got the start for the Aggies as the DP.  She singled and stole second to start the second inning.  Next up, Amy Bergeson was called out during her at bat.  It was perhaps for hitting out of the box or running into a bunted ball.  These are two rules that nearly never come up in baseball, but occur regularly in softball.  It’s always weird when it happens.  Caity was left stranded.  Sam got through the second without incident.

People were still coming in to the stands.  They brought lots of kids with them.  We seemed to be nearing capacity.  There was a t-shirt toss in the crowd.  I got a look at them.  They were tournament shirts and looked cool, but I didn’t feel right going for one with all the kids around and so many Aggie shirts in my closet already.  I noticed a kid below me eating a hamburger in an Aggie wrapper.  I don’t think were selling them at the concessions, since there isn’t a grill there.  I wonder where it came from.  I still want to try one of the concession hamburgers at the Pan-Am.

Jeanelle Medina led off the third with a single, but paid the price.  She was hit on the elbow on the throw to first.  She was clearly smarting from it.  Fahren then tripled her in.  There was a play at the plate where the catcher seemed to have her caught.  The catcher might have been obstructing the plate before she got the ball.  It’s hard to say, but it wasn’t blown call on the tag.  Kelsey then got Fahern in with a sac fly.  Again, there was a play at the plate.  I think the ump ruled that Fahern got her foot in under the catcher to touch the plate before the tag.  I think.  2-0 Aggies.

I had on my new red coat for the game.  I hadn’t worn it on Friday, because it matched Oklahoma’s colors, but I wasn’t going choose partisanship over practically today.  Annoyingly, I noticed I also matched the Cardinals here and would match Boston U the next day.  Mini basketballs were tossed into the crowd.  I admit I wanted one, but I didn’t want to take one from the multitude of kids present.  I noticed Brielle Sterns from the volleyball team came in.  It’s good to see her walking around after her injury.  The Cisco Softball team also came in.  I don’t know where they’re from, but we’re officially stuffed here.  What’s going to happen when the large number of OK fans come back for the nightcap?   

Sam was throwing very hard.  You could tell by the pop in the catcher’s mitt.  After getting two outs, the top of the Cardinals’ order came up with three hits.  Unfortunately, two of those hits were home runs.  Maddy Labrador had a two-run shot.  This was followed by a Janae Hogg hitting a solo shot to center.  She’d been hit by a pitch in the first.  It’s now 3-2 Ball State. 

Catcher Shelby Shultes singled in the fourth.  Brandi Wilke came in as a pinch runner, but was eliminated on a force.  I hope I get to see her do more than pinch running this season.  Jeanelle got an infield hit, but somehow on the play, Destiny Blueford, who’d been on first, was out at second after she’d cleanly occupied the base.  I don’t know what happened.  Suddenly, I looked up from my scorecard and somebody was out and the inning was over.  I don’t think she was tagged out.  Maybe she left first early?  This wasn’t a badly called game, just a very confusing one.

Some little girls wearing lady El Paso Chihuahua gear entered the stands.  I say “Lady Chihuahua” because Chico’s logo was wearing a hair bow.  Could we be seeing a “Chica” friend for Chico at the ballpark sometime?  Interesting thought.  Sam was mixing in a good offspeed for the fourth and only gave up a single.  For the fifth, Pistol Pete mustache bandanas were tossed to the crowd.  That’s who we’re missing here, Pete!  The fans kept coming.  I saw Kaeli Atkinson and maybe Baylee Robinson from the Women’s basketball team come in.  Next inning, the PA would give a shout out to the team, but those were the only two I saw.  Kelsey singled, but that was the only hit in the top.  Rachel and Fahren combined to make a great throw and catch for an out at first in the bottom.

Ron nudged me and nodded at the western horizon.  The setting sun, along with some clouds, created a spectacular neon violet and orange sunset.  A lady nearby stood up and took a picture of it.  She may have been from out-of-town, since residents get these kind of displays all the time.  (Really.)  Ron also said, “We’re full, dude.”  I told him that the listed capacity of stadium was 1000, so that must be where we were at.  Some young people were now sitting on the walkway in front of the stands.       

Caity doubled to start the sixth, but was caught stealing to end that threat.  The Cardinals went down in order in the bottom.  Sarai Mejia came in to pinch hit to start the seven inning.  She flied out on the first pitch and wasn’t even introduced.  The next two batters went down to end the game, 3-2 Cardinals final.

It was a disappointing loss, but also somewhat uplifting.  I give Aeshia Miles, the Cardinals’ starting pitcher, a lot of credit for keeping the Aggie offense down.  The girls didn’t forget how to hit; they just ran into a very good pitcher.  On that note, Samaria Diaz is my easy Aggie player of the game with a complete game, getting six strikeouts and only giving up four hits and three runs.  She might have only made two bad pitches (or maybe the hitters hit her best on those pitches).  This was a much better appearance than her last two.  On that note, the Aggies didn’t beat themselves and really picked up their defense.    

A few fans left at the end of the game, but most stayed and more people came in.  The PA thanked the Ball State fans for coming to the tournament.  Ron and I decided we’d better keep our seats.  We took turns going to the bathroom.  There was little time to dwell on this game as the main event, the Aggies versus the Sooners, was going to commence shortly.