The Cougars won all five games at the Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational, sweeping three ranked opponents in the process — a first in UH history.
It took extra innings, but the Cougars beat No. 16 LSU Sunday on a walk-off single from Reina Gaber that drove in Ashleigh Jones for the deciding run.
“To win five games when three of our five games were against ranked opponents is exciting for us,” head coach Kyla Holas said. “Offensively, today wasn’t the way we’d like it to go, but we found a way to win. Sometimes in tough games that’s all you’ve got to do, find a way to win. I was proud of them for that.”
Saturday’s double-header was a tale of two teams. They opened up with LSU and were dealt a four-run deficit early. The Cougars managed to storm all the way back to beat the Tigers in eight innings.
The second game was less of a challenge as the Cougars blew out Southern 12-2 in in a run-ruled five inning game.
The Cougars opened up the invitational Friday with a 3-2 win over No. 20 Oklahoma State. The Cougars scored a single run in the first three innings and were able to fend off a late rally from the Cowgirls.
In its second game, UH came out with a 6-0 win over the Nicholls State Colonels. Senior pitcher Amanda Crabtree had a dazzling performance, earning the first no-hitter of her career.
“That is a very difficult thing to do,” head coach Kyla Holas said. “It’s 100 percent a team effort, no doubt. It’s a big thing for us and it was really good to see the whole team contribute and get behind that.”
