Game 1 Box Score - Texas-Arlington 5, South Alabama 4.pdf
Game 2 Box Score - Texas-Arlington 7, South Alabama 6 (8 inn.).pdf

ARLINGTON, Texas – The University of South Alabama softball team dropped a pair of late-inning heartbreakers Saturday evening to Texas-Arlington as the Mavericks picked up a pair of walk-off wins, defeating the Jaguars 5-4 in the opener and 7-6 in eight innings in the nightcap at Allan Saxe Field.

"We were disappointed in the first game because of the mistakes we made defensively, and we needed to clean those up in game two," South Alabama head coach Becky Clark said.  "We talked about those in between games and I thought we did clean that up in game two.  I was proud of our players for how they went after that game and played hard.  Chandler [Sparkman] did a great job and gave us a chance to win.  She made some good pitches in some places and jammed [UTA] and they hit some jam shots that landed in no man's land.  That was just one of those games that didn't work out in our favor.

"We've been going through some adversity and we're having to work through some things, but we know we will come out on the other side of this; I'm confident of that part.  We recruit character and character has to work through these types of things.  You can't get frustrated or down on yourself; you just have to keep going and know it's going to turnaround."

South Alabama (24-17, 6-12 SBC) will close out the series on Sunday with first pitch scheduled for 12 p.m.

GAME ONE: TEXAS-ARLINGTON 5, SOUTH ALABAMA 4
South Alabama tied the game up in the top half of the seventh, but Reagan Wright's walk-off home run in the home half gave Texas-Arlington (22-19, 8-9 SBC) a 5-4 win over the Jags in the opener of the doubleheader.

Kaleigh Todd and Kristian Foster each recorded two hits for the Jaguars, while the latter also drove in two runs.  Abby Krzywiecki had two RBI in her pinch-hit plate appearance.

Destin Vicknair (10-9) took the loss as she allowed five runs – two earned – on eight hits, while walking four and striking out just one.

Wright was 2-for-3 at the plate with a run scored and two RBI of her own, while Shelbi Sikes was 2-for-2 with a RBI.  Aileen Garcia also had two hits in her four at-bats with a RBI.  Whitney Walton reached in three of her four plate appearances, recording a hit and a pair of walks.

Sam Clakley improved to 16-10 on the spring with the complete-game win.  In her seven innings, Clakley allowed four runs – th

The Mavs took an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first as Garcia lined a 1-2 pitch to the gap in left center for a single to, scoring Walton all the way from first.  Walton had reached a two-out infield single as she beat Foster's throw to first to keep the inning alive.  

The Jags took a 3-1 lead in the third with three runs on four hits.  Savanna Mayo began the inning with a walk and then moved to third when Katleyn Gruich laced a double to the right-center gap.  USA loaded the bases two batters later on Todd's bunt single.  Krzywiecki – pinch hitting for Nichols then lined a single to center, plating Mayo and Gruich.  Foster followed with a RBI single to center of her own, scoring Nichols – who had reentered – and giving the Jaguars the two-run advantage.

UTA reclaimed the lead in its half of the third, scoring three runs on three hits and two costly errors.  Walton walked with one out in the frame and Garcia reached on a single that had initially been ruled as an error.  The two Mav base runners moved up 60 feet on a ground out and loaded the bases after a Lauren Curry was hit by a pitch.  Wright then singled back up the middle to score Walton and Melanie Mendoza also came into score after a throwing error, tying the game at 3-3.  Sikes then brought in Curry when she singled down the left field line to give UTA the lead (4-3).

South Alabama rallied late to tie the contests with a two-out RBI single from Foster.  Gruich was hit by a pitch to ignite the rally.  With two outs in the inning, Clakley looked as she were going to get out of it and end the game as Nichols hit a bouncer back to her, but she was unable to field it cleanly, allowing Nichols to reach and keep the inning alive.  Foster then capitalized as she lined a single to right to bring home pinch runner Marissa Landrum and tied the game up at 4-4.

The Jags didn't hold the momentum long as Wright lifted a walk-off home run on first pitch she saw from Vicknair over the wall in left to give Texas-Arlington the one-run victory.

GAME TWO: TEXAS-ARLINGTON 7, SOUTH ALABAMA 6 (8 innings)
South Alabama tied the game up again in the top of the seventh, but like in the opener, Texas-Arlington would get a walk-off home run to pick up the 7-6 win in extra innings.

Amanda Minahan was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with two runs scored and two RBI in the loss, as six other Jaguars also recorded a hit.  Foster, Mayo and Aly Smith also drove in a run.

Chandler Sparkman (1-2) went 7.1 innings in the circle for South Alabama, allowing seven runs – all earned – on 10 hits with five strikeouts and two walks.  

Clakley (17-10) – who picked up the win in the opener – earned the win in relief in the game two.  In her three innings of work, she allowed two runs on two hits.   Sam Montes started the game and went five innings where she surrendered four runs on seven hits.

Wright (2-for-4) drove in three for the Mavericks, while Krista Rude also had two hits in her three plate appearances.  Garcia also drove in a pair of runs.  All but one of the nine UTA starters recorded at least one hit.

After going in order their first time up, South Alabama strung together two hits and a walk to get on the board first.  Minahan singled to left to begin the frame and Haleigh Lane worked a five-pitch walk to put runners at first and second.  After a nice defensive play by Walton at short to get Mayo at third and a fly out, Smith delivered the big hit as she lined a single to center to score Lane all the way from second.

UTA got the run back and tied the game up in the home half of the second.  Mallory Foster doubled off the wall in center with one out and was then sacrificed around to third.  The Mav right fielder then came home to tie the contest up at 1-1 on a wild pitch by Sparkman.

The Jaguars got the run back and retook the lead two innings later.  South loaded the bases in the fourth on back-to-back hits by Minahan and Lane and a walk from Gruich.  With Mayo at the plate, USA went up 2-1 when Minahan scored on a wild pitch from Montes.

The lead didn't last long as the Mavericks tied the game back up at 2-2 in the bottom half on Wright's two-out RBI triple to right, scoring Curry – who had reached on a fielder's choice.

Minahan broke the tie in the top half of the fifth as she blasted her eighth HR of the season over the left-center field wall.  The two-run shot was the 25th homer of her career, tying her for third on the program's career chart with Brittany Fowler (2010-13).

UTA answers back the next half inning with four runs on five hits to retake the lead at 6-4, with all four of the Mavericks' runs coming with two outs in the inning.  Kacey Everett singled to right center and Sandra Mendoza doubled to the gap in left center to put runners in scoring position.  Sparkman retired the next two UTA batters and nearly escaped unscathed, but Garcia's flare to right dropped just inside the foul line, plating Everett and Mendoza and tying the game at 4-4.  After a wild pitch, Foster was intentionally walked, and Curry then beat out an infield single to load the bases.  Wright delivered another big hit for the Mavs one batter latter as she singled to center plating two more runs and giving Texas-Arlington the 6-4 advantage.

Down two in its final at-bat in regulation, South Alabama had another late rally.  Megan Harris singled off Clakley's glove to spark the rally and Todd then reached on a fielder's choice.  The Jag duo was sacrificed over by Nichols and Foster again came up big as she singled to center, scoring Harris.  Minahan then walked to load the bases and Gruich was hit by a pitch to plate USA's second run of the inning and tie the game at 6-6.  

USA had a chance to retake the lead with the bases still loaded, but Clakley was able to get Mayo to fly out to right to end the inning.

With one out in the eighth, Sikes swung at the first pitch she saw from Sparkman and homered to right to end the game.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
    
Join the Bullpen Club, the softball specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund.  Members have access to purchase parking passes and receive Jaguar Softball gear.  All donations to the Bullpen Club go directly to support the South Alabama softball program.  For more information on how you can join visit:  jaguarathleticfund.com/bullpenclub

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