CHARLESTON, SC – North Carolina A&T and the College of Charleston engaged in a softball marathon on Saturday, with the Aggies claiming a 9-8, 9-inning victory over the Cougars at Patriots Point.
It took the Aggies 167 minutes to improve to 10-31 overall and 4-16 in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA). Charleston dropped to 9-31 overall and 3-17 in league play. Each team has won a one-run ball game in the series. The two teams will decide the series winner on Sunday with an 11 a.m. start from Patriots Point.
The game went into extra innings tied 7-7 after the Cougars stranded a runner at first in the home seventh inning against A&T graduate reliever Kayla Douglas (W, 2-7). Douglas did run into some trouble in the Charleston eighth, as Mia Dittoe and Shealyn Starks hit back-to-back singles with one out. But Douglas got Savannah Lockhart to fly out, and she struck out Sierra Paradis.
After getting out of the eighth, A&T opened the ninth with a single up the middle by sophomore catcher Camryn Caldwell. Charleston reliever Kelly McKenna (L, 3-12) put runners on first and second with one out after hitting senior Alyxx Estrada with a pitch. Sophomore Katriel Williams moved both runners into scoring position by grounding out to first.
Junior Joey Barkhimer delivered for the Aggies with a single to center field. Caldwell scored on the play, and a throwing error by center field Kaytlin Stacey allowed Estrada to score to give the Aggies a 9-7 lead. The Aggies had a chance to do more damage as freshman Jamari Moss and graduate Brenay Howard walked to load the bases.
But freshman Trinity Glover grounded out to send the game into the ninth inning. Brooke Marquez hit a one-out single off Douglas, and one batter later, she scored on an RBI double from Stacey to bring the Cougars to within one, 9-8. But with the go-ahead run at the plate in Aniz Roman. Roman fouled out to left field to secure the win for A&T.
Freshman Shandi Brown went 2-for-4 for the Aggies. Estrada scored three times, and Glover drove in two runs.
Estrada scored the first run of the game in the first inning on an error, before an RBI sacrifice fly from Moss gave the Aggies a 2-0 lead. A bases-loaded walk by A&T starter Amaya Kearse helped the Cougars cut the lead to 2-1. A Halle Cannon homer in the Charleston second helped the Cougars tie the game at 2-2 before the Aggies put together an enormous third off Charleston starter Payton Lemire.
Estrada walked to open the inning. Williams followed with a single before a groundout by Barkhimer moved both runners into scoring position. Moss brought Estrada home to give the Aggies a 3-2 lead. Howard walked to load the bases before a Lemire wild pitch allowed Williams to score. Glover stepped to the plate and hit a two-run single to left center to give the Aggies a 6-2 lead.
Following the Glover single, the Cougars placed Kelly inside the circle, and Brown welcomed her with an RBI double to left field to score Glover for a five-run A&T advantage. Charleston responded with a five-run sixth as Cannon hit a three-run homer, and Lockhart secured a two-run single, tying the game at 7-7 and eventually sending it into extra innings.
Cannon had four RBIs for the Cougars.
