For the second weekend in a row, an eighth inning was all that stood between No. 5 Texas softball and victory in its final game of a series against a top-15-ranked program.
However, unlike last week against No. 2 Oklahoma, Texas entered extra innings against No. 13 Georgia Bulldogs with the series on the line. It had won 7-5 on Saturday and lost 4-2 on Sunday, making this Monday matchup a critical tiebreaker.
Luckily, the Longhorns seem to thrive under the pressure of eighth-inning action.
Junior infielder Viviana Martinez got on base with a line drive to left field, and senior infielder Leighann Goode stepped up to the plate to keep the momentum going. Goode, drilling the ball over center field, brought Martinez and herself home to help give Texas an advantage.
Freshman pitcher Hannah Wells immediately followed with a home run of her own, tying the bow on a 6-3 victory and the Longhorns’ first series win since March 29.
Heading into the week, head coach Mike White anticipated Georgia’s biggest threat to be its offensive prowess. The Bulldogs entered the series averaging about seven runs per game, and their team batting at an average of .355 to rank No. 9 in the country.
“We have some higher averages according to four hundreds and three hundreds, but their team batting average is right around us,” White said. “They’ve got some depth throughout the lineup.”
That being said, while White’s pitching staff wasn’t perfect, it held the Bulldogs to just 12 runs across all three matchups this past weekend. Junior pitcher Teagan Kavan faltered a bit in the first game of the weekend and was pulled for senior pitcher Citlaly Gutierrez, but Kavan pitched all eight innings and accumulated eight strikeouts on Monday.
Gutierrez helped stabilize play on both Saturday and Sunday, entering in relief both times. Wells and sophomore pitcher Brenlee Gonzales each got a chance to pitch in the second game of the series, but Gutierrez eventually came in after they struggled to settle into a rhythm.
Despite giving up three runs with three errors across two innings in the second game of the series, Wells continued to prove why White trusts her to deliver offensively.
In addition to her solo home run in the third matchup’s eighth inning, her fifth-inning three RBI home run in the series opener helped the Longhorns narrow their deficit to just one run, setting the stage for a comeback 7-5 win.
White says Wells’ ability to perform alongside more experienced players in critical moments is a testament to the curiosity with which she practices.
“I just like her questions week-in and week-out at practice, and after the game and during the game,” White said. “She has the physical talent, but this game comes down to a lot more than that.”
Goode and Wells were the only two Longhorns to send the ball over the fence in Athens, but junior infielder Viviana Martinez drove Texas’ small ball with seven hits throughout the weekend.
Texas played just well enough to escape the Peach State on top, and the Longhorns will now turn their attention to a midweek matchup against No. 17 Oklahoma State on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in front of a home crowd.