Houston’s outfielder Cayla Warner (8) going up to the mound to bat the first inning in the Red vs. Black Softball Series on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026 in Houston. | Simarjot Singh/The Cougar
The University of Houston softball team played game two of the Red and Black series on Tuesday, Oct. 27, at the Cougar Softball Stadium. The Red Team had an offensive explosion, taking game two and the series by a score of 10-4.
Freshman pitcher Frei Pizarro was the starting pitcher for the Black Team. Pizarro made the first two outs via strikeout and a groundout back to the circle.
The Red Team fired back after the first two outs with a home run by freshman utility Addison Otto to put the Red Team up 1-0 early. Sophomore infielder Nina Peyton-Johnson kept the two-out rally going with another home run to extend the lead to 2-0.
After a double by sophomore infielder Leilani Garcia, sophomore infielder transfer from Texas Tech Brianna Hinson hit a two-run single to put the Red Team up 4-0 after the top of the first.
Senior pitcher Gigi Solis was the starter for the Red Team. Solis made two quick outs, but after walking junior infielder Larisa Perez, an error on the defense helped Perez score for the Black Team.
After Perez scored, sophomore infielder Ronnie Esparza launched one over the fence to cut the lead by half.
Junior pitcher Yanina Sherwood, a transfer from UNLV, came in relief for Pizarro. Sherwood kept composure and held the Red team, limiting the team for a couple of innings.
Red answered back with a run on an RBI single by junior catcher Isabel Cintron to bring the lead to 5-3. In the top of the third, Red added another run with an RBI single by Peyton-Johnson to make the score 6-2.
Pizarro came back in after Sherwood pitched for the Black team.
Esparza launched another ball over the fence in the bottom of the fifth to cut the lead to 6-4. Senior infielder Makenna Mitchell launched her own home run over the fence in the top of the seventh, adding two more runs to the Red Team, making the score 8-4.
Two batters later, Garcia hit another home run for Red to put them up by six late in the game.
Solis pitched 6 and two-thirds innings, allowing four runs; freshman pitcher Zamari Ball closed out the game with a groundout to secure the victory.
The Black team tried to come to get something going in the bottom of the seventh, but the Red team shut them down and won game two by a score of 10-4.
The Red team leads the series 2-0 and they are looking to sweep the Black team. First pitch is set for 3:30 pm on Wednesday, Oct. 28.
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