Drue Watkins
Sports Editor
On March 3, the No. 18 Cameron softball team split their double-header against the No. 21 Texas A&M-Commerce Lions, losing the first game 11-3 and winning the second 2-1.
The double-header finished the three-game series against the Lions, as the Aggies failed to take the series by losing two over the weekend.
The Aggies now sit at a 15-5 overall record and 7-2 within the Lone Star Conference (LSC). The Lions advance to a 15-2 overall record and 5-1 in the LSC.
Head coach Dennis Furr said the team could have played better over the weekend.
“We struggled to get things going offensively,” he said, “and it slowed us down more than it should have. Consistent offense would have helped during the series.”
Aggie freshman Makaylah Ramirez led the team in the double-header, going 4-7 with four RBI’s. Junior pitcher Rylee Willmon earned her seventh win of the season, giving up only one run on five hits and striking out four Lions.
For the Lions, reigning NFCA DII Player of the Week Mariah Jameyson led her team with five RBI’s and three runs scored.
To begin the double-header, the Lions got to a strong offensive start in game one.
Jameyson hit a three-run homer in the top of the first inning to kick-start the scoring and give the Lions a quick lead.
The Aggies retaliated with one run scored in the bottom of the first, as Ramirez hit a double that allowed sophomore shortstop Brenna Busby to run home from first base.
Furr said Ramirez is coming into her own.
“She’s starting to figure things out as a player,” he said. “Since she’s so young, she can grow and learn with the team, and we’ve started seeing her improve.”
Offensive production became stagnate in the second and third innings, but the fourth opened more scoring on both sides.
The Lions scored three more runs beginning with a solo homer and a two RBI-triple, while the Aggies struck back with two runs of their own after a two-RBI single from Ramirez.
In the top of the fifth, the Lions led 6-3.
The small lead didn’t last long, however, as the Lions scored four more times in the fifth inning, ending with a three-run homer. The Aggies failed to put up any more runs throughout the rest of the game.
Furr said the inability to score in the latter half sealed it.
“The team needed to get more hits and get on base,” he said. “We didn’t do enough there, and there has to be improvement.”
The Lions finished the game after Jameyson hit her second homerun of the game, giving A&M-Commerce the win, 11-3.
Cameron sophomore pitcher Bethany Hines earned her second loss of the season after struggling over the weekend, giving up a total of nine runs on nine hits and just one strikeout.
The second game of the day fared better for the Aggies, but the offenses faltered for both teams, as the game turned into a pitching duel between Willmon and the Lions’ Emily Otto.
Neither team scored in the first four innings of the game, but Cameron did eventually strike first in the fifth inning.
Furr said it was good to get that first score.
“It established the tone, even though it was so late in the game,” he said. “If the team could get that run scored earlier on, the game wouldn’t have been so close.”
Aggie sophomore outfielder Kaylyn Smith hit a double, stole third base and then ran home after a throwing error by the Lions. After Smith’s score, Ramirez came up to bat and delivered for the Aggies, driving in senior Annie Combs on a single up the middle.
The Aggies led 2-0.
The Lions managed to score a single run after a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning, but Willmon held on, shutting down the rest of A&M-Commerce’s scoring threat. She retired the side in the seventh inning, giving Cameron the 2-1 win.
Furr said he liked getting the final win, but didn’t like losing the series.
“This was a series that we could have won,” he said. “We’ll go back to practicing hard and working on what needs to be worked on.”
On March 9-10, the Aggies play their next series at the Tarleton State TexAnns for three games. The TexAnns are 16-5 overall and 4-5 in the LSC.
