It was a tough start to the Hilton Head Plaza Classic as the Cougars dropped both games Friday, falling to the Texas A&M – Corpus Christi Islanders and the Illinois Fighting Illini.
Comebacks seemed to be the theme of the day; in both games the road team got out to a quick advantage, and the Cougars mounted a rally that fell just short, losing the Islanders 5-4 and Illini 10-7.
The first match of the evening had a bit of a delay due to a quick rain shower, but after an hour things got going, and it didn’t take long for the Islander offense to make itself known with a quick 5-0 lead.
Freshman pitcher Kayla Maxwell got the start for the Cougars and after two quick innings found some trouble, giving up one run on four hits. A double play helped Maxwell out of the third before too much damage was dealt.
Following a walk to start the fourth, Houston made the switch, bringing in junior pitcher Julana Shrum, but the Islanders made use of the walk and scored on a sacrifice fly after a double moved the runner to third.
The Islanders broke the game open in the top of the sixth with a three-run home run, giving them a 5-0 edge, but the Cougars would tighten the gap in the bottom of the inning with a two-run home run from junior Selena Hernandez.
The Cougars gave the Islanders all they could handle in the seventh, scoring two on consecutive RBI-singles by senior catcher Kris Davila and junior outfielder Katie St. Pierre, but the tying run would end up stranded at first.
The second game of the day for the Cougars seemed to mirror the first, with the Illini getting out to a quick lead and the Cougars forced to play catch-up for the rest of the game.
After pitching 3 innings in the first game, Shrum got the start for the Cougars against the Illini but never found her grove, giving up seven runs on seven hits in just over two innings of work.
The Cougars didn’t wait this time, tying the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the second after junior designated hitter Courtney Klingler doubled home Davila and then scored on an error.
Illinois accepted the challenge, scoring six runs in the top of the third, capped with a three-run home run that led to the Cougars bring in sophomore pitcher Shelby Miller to replace Shrum.
The Cougars would chip away over the next few innings, scoring one in the third on a single from senior outfielder Tiffani McKnight and two more in the fourth on a Klingler solo home run and Hernandez RBI-single.
Illinois added two more runs in the top of the sixth that put the game away, as the Cougars scored only one more run in each of the sixth and seventh, including a solo home run from Shrum.
The Cougars are back in action Saturday against the Islanders, with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m., and will close out the Houston Hilton Plaza Classic Sunday against the Illini at 11:30 a.m.
