The Colonels fell to Southland Conference Opponent Texas A&M Corpus Christi 3-2 on Tuesday, April 15, at Swanner Field in Thibodaux.

The Colonels (25-18, 13-7 SLC) played the first two games of their series against the Islanders (11-33, 5-15 SLC). In the first contest the Colonels run ruled the Islanders 10-1 in five innings. The second game turned much more competitive.

Head Coach Ron Frost said that games like these feel good but with a conference opponent you can never expect it to be easy.

Game Two

The game was a defensive showcase with pitcher Sierra Ouellette leading the way pitching a scoreless game through the first five innings. The Colonels were unable to score in the first four innings.

In the bottom of the fifth, star infielder Erin Krause hit a single that brought in Laylin Sturm to give the Colonels the 1-0 lead. Krause then scored a run after an error in the outfield, giving the Colonels a two run lead.

“I looked up and I saw her fumbling the ball around and at such a crucial time in the game, I just went for it,” Krause said of advancing home on the error.

The Islanders responded in the top of the sixth inning. With runners on second and third base, Karisa Lopez hit a single to right field that brought in Natalie Garcia and advanced Mackenzie Durr to third base; cutting the Colonel lead to one.

A sac fly by Kayla Santiago to center field brought in the game tying run from Durr and allowed Lopez to advance to second base. Erynne Castillo hit a single to right center field that scored a run from Lopez, giving the Islanders a 3-2 lead going into the bottom of the sixth inning.

Islanders pitcher Kendra Winfrey picked back up on her good night, pitching a scoreless inning; forcing two ground outs and a pop out. The score stayed the same entering the top of the seventh inning.

The Colonels changed pitchers, replacing Ouellette with Ashley Little. After a pitch hit a batter and a second batter was walked, Frost replaced Little with Averi Paden. Paden immediately began working, forcing a line out to third base. She then forced back to back ground outs to get out of the top of the inning with no runs scored.

The Colonels needed a timely hit to come in the bottom of the last inning. Unfortunately, they were unable to find a spark; Sturm hit a fly out to center field, Claire Sisco grounded out to second base and finally Carmella Muccilli struck out swinging to close out the game, Islanders win 3-2.

Frost said that beating a team twice in a row is never easy, especially a conference opponent. “It’s like I said you just can’t underestimate a team like that regardless of record and all that, especially when somebody knows your program well and you play so many games against each other.”

The Colonels and Islanders are scheduled to play in the final game of their series on Wednesday, April 14, at 11 a.m. at Swanner Field.

“I told my girls they’re going to bounce back and I appreciate the way that they fought, you can’t win them all and that’s why it’s a series. And they’re resilient; they know that softball is the ultimate game of the day,” Frost said.

The Colonels look to bounce back with a win to cap off the series against the islanders and boost their standings in the Southland Conference.