TXST SOFTBALL
The Bobcats bounced back from their rough performance on Sunday to shutout the Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islanders 7-0.
Texas State improves to 10-6 overall while the Islanders fall to 3-13.
“[I was proud of ] the way we came out,” Head Coach Ricci Woodard said. “We tried to make some adjustments this week at the plate, and just the way we went about our business, I felt like it paid off today right away.”
On the changes, while Woodard went over some physical changes, it was the Bobcats being aggressive at the plate that had the biggest impact.
“We did a few mechanical things and we talked about a few mental things,” Woodard said. “But overall, I just felt like they did a good job of being aggressive at the plate and sticking to the plan that we put in place.”
After getting out of a bases loaded jam in the top of the first, the Bobcats scored first on a tworun RBI triple by junior Karmyn Bass.
Later in the at-bat, Bass was brought home by junior Katarina Zarate on an RBI double.
Capping off the first inning, junior Kate Bubela crushed a two-run home run that went 215 feet over the left fence wall as the Bobcats took a commanding 5-0 lead.
Bubela struck again for Texas State in the bottom of the third when she connected with another two-run home run to extend the lead to 7-0.
“I was just trying to see the ball over the plate,” Bubela said. “Just do what I can for my team.”
On the team’s bounceback performance, Bubela felt the team had a lot of spark going into the game against the Islanders while also finding ways to stay on top offensively.
“We just brought more energy out here and just barrelled the ball,” Bubela said ”It was our main goal and I thought we did a pretty good job.”
WEEKEND SERIES PREVIEW The Bobcats are set for a massive non-conference series against the Southeastern Louisiana Lions in a showdown of the top mid-major programs in the country.
The Lions enter the series with a 13-5 overall record.
With Southeastern Louisiana being known for their aggressive play, Woodard stressed the importance of matching and maintaining their same energy.
“We have to approach it the same way we did this,” Woodard said. “We have to come out and be the aggressors, because that’s what they’re known for is their aggressive style of play. So we have to make sure that we’re not chasing them and that they’re chasing us.”
The Bobcats and the Lions will play in a doubleheader on Friday before closing out the series on Saturday.
First pitch on the final game is set for 12 p.m. Saturday at Bobcat Softball Stadium.
Junior Kate Bubela is congratulated by Head Coach Ricci Woodard after hitting a two-run home run. Bubela was 2-2 from the plate with two home runs and four RBIs. Daily Record photo by Gerald Castillo
