EAST GREENSBORO – North Carolina A&T walked off for the third time this season after Dezianna Patmon hit a walk-off double to give the Aggies a 6-5 win over George Mason (2-2) Sunday at Lady Aggies Softball Complex in non-conference softball play.
This season, the Aggies are 6-4 overall and 4-1 in one-run games.
"This is a team that likes to bend, but they don't break," A&T coach Patti Raduenz said. "They don't give up, and they showed it again this game. It's nice to see them fight all the way through from start to finish."
A&T scored the first five runs, but George Mason chipped away by scoring a run in the fifth inning, three runs in the sixth, and a run in the seventh to tie it.
Desttany Parker started the seventh inning with a walk. Jazzmaine Hammond pinch ran for Parker as freshman Dezianna Patmon followed up and drove a pitch to center field, almost clearing the fence. Hammond rounded third and headed home. The throw came in late as Hammond slid over home plate for the winning run.
"I've been seeing the ball pretty good," Patmon said. "I didn't want to do too much because I knew it wouldn't work out if I tried too hard. I knew I had a runner on first, and all I had to do was to put the ball in play, at least move her and sacrifice myself. That pitch came, it was right down the middle, and I took that swing. I thought it was gone, but I was happy that it was in a gap, and I could move her."
Patmon went 4-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Freshman Jailyn Tineo went 1-for-2 with three RBI. Fellow freshman Icess Tresvik went 2-for-3 with two RBI. Another freshman, Joey Barkhimer, pitched the first 6.0 innings, giving up five runs on eight hits.
Sophomore S'Nyiah Stinson (2-2) picked up the win, pitching a scoreless seventh inning, where she did not give up a hit, walked two and recorded one strikeout.
The Aggies opened the first inning with a big rally. Eternal Fuller started the inning with a bunt single. Fuller moved to second on a groundout before Tresvik delivered the game's first run with a single to center field.
The rally kept going as Patmon singled through the left side and Kayla Taylor singled to the left fielder to load the bases with one out. Tineo drove the ball to center field to clear the bases to increase the lead to 4-0.
A&T had an opportunity to add more runs in the third inning as the Aggies put runners on first and second with a Patmon single and a walk to Taylor. Tineo walked to load the bases with one out, but a strikeout and a line out ended the inning.
George Mason scored its first run in the fifth inning after an RBI double by Maddy Myers. Then, in the sixth inning, the Patriots added three runs to cut the lead to 5-4.
The Patriots tied the game at 5 in the seventh inning after a wild pitch with the bases loaded, scored Amber Verstynen from third. The next pitch was a called strike three on Taylor Dadig to end the inning and strand runners on second and third.
