TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Alabama A&M (10-21, 5-11 SWAC) split a series opening doubleheader at Florida A&M (15-25, 9-8 SWAC), picking up a 5-1 victory and falling 5-0, in an NCAA Division I softball doubleheader on Friday, April 15.
GAME 1: Alabama A&M 5, Florida A&M 1
In what would be a pitcher's duel from the very beginning, the teams would combine for just one hit through the first three and a half innings, although A&M put runners on first and second on a pair of walks in the third before the Rattlers squelched the rally by inducing a groundout.
FAMU would then break through in the bottom of the fourth as they used two singles and an error to plate Nyah Morgan on a Anizya Vargas sacrifice fly for a 1-0 lead. Left with runners on second and third, Jane'a Mobley then walked before the Bulldogs choked off a run at home plate and got out of the inning with a strikeout.
Having escaped that jam relatively unscathed, A&M capitalized in the top of the fifth as freshman outfielder
Da'Nijah Wade (Columbia, Tenn.) reached on a bunt and immediately stole second. Sophomore second baseman
Lauryn Gross (Huntsville, Ala.) then walked and both advanced on a groundout to make it second and third.
Freshman outfielder
Allyson Riches (San Diego, Calif.) then walked to load the bases and senior first baseman
Rachael McKinney (Birmingham, Ala.) promptly unloaded them, bringing home three on a double to left to take a 3-1 lead. The Rattlers got out of the inning with a ground out and fly out before the teams would combine for three straight hitless half innings.
That would change in the top of the seventh, however, as Gross walked, moved to second on a passed ball and then scored on a single by freshman outfielder
Tatianna Roman (Cypress, Calif.). Having advanced to third on a groundout, Roman then came home on a passed ball to make it 5-1 before junior catcher
Brooklyn Wallace (Hartselle, Ala.) singled and was thrown out to end the inning.
A Mobley single would then be all FAMU could manage in the home half of the seventh as a strikeout sandwiched between two groundouts locked up the four-run victory in the series opener.
Held to just three hits on the day, Vargas provided the lone RBI without benefit of one of those hits and added a walk while Lauryn Peppers went the distance in the circle. She surrendered five runs, three earned, while walking seven and striking out four to fall to 2-3.
McKinney anchored the Alabama A&M effort with three RBIs on one hit and added a walk while Roman was 1-for-3 with a run, steal and walk. Gross would add a pair of runs and walks and senior pitcher
Alyssa Lopez (San Leandro, Calif.) threw a complete game three-hitter. The latter allowed no earned runs and struck out six to collect the win and move to 3-5.
GAME 2: Florida A&M 5, Alabama A&M 0
A hitless first inning would give way to the Rattlers using a pair of singles to start off the second and a one-out hit-by-pitch to load the bases before sophomore pitcher
Esperanza Coe (Beaumont, Calif.) got out of the jam with a strikeout and infield pop up.
After holding the Bulldogs hitless through the third, FAMU would finally break through in the home half of the inning, scoring a pair of runs on as many hits to take a 2-0 lead. A Morgan walk would get things started before Destiny Cuevas knocked a one-out single to put two on. An out later, Mobley then laced a triple to right that scored both for a 2-0 lead.
A&M would get their first hit in the fourth but could not stop the roll that the Rattlers had gotten on. In the bottom of the fourth they would open with three straight singles, plating Cris'Deona Beasley on a Mia Blasingane single. Following a strikeout, Desirae Beacham then delivered a sacrifice fly to make it 4-0 before a fly ball ended any further threat.
The teams would then combine for three hits until the seventh but FAMU would make one of theirs count as they made it 5-0 a frame before that. In that inning Cuevas doubled home pinch runner Alexis Jones to hit that five-run margin.
The Bulldogs would battle back in the seventh with a leadoff error and a two-out double by Roman that put runners on second and third. Florida A&M would end that rally a play later with a throw from right field to first to lock up the 5-0 decision.
Mobley led the way for the Rattlers with a pair of RBIs and went 3-for-3 with a triple while Cuevas was 2-for-4 with a double, RBI and run. Blasingane and Beachum each added RBIs and Beasley went the distance in the circle. She allowed just three hits, no runs and struck out 10 to improve to 8-9.
Roman, McKinney and Wallace would muster one hit apiece for A&M's offense while Coe threw four innings, allowed four earned runs and struck out six to fall to 3-8.
Following the series finale at 11 a.m. tomorrow, Saturday, April 16, the Bulldogs step out of conference play one more time when they travel to Tennessee State for a doubleheader on Tuesday, April 19. First pitch is slated for 2 p.m. in Nashville, Tennessee.
