The Blinn College softball team was forced to wait an extra week for its season to begin.
By the time sophomore Peyton Welker threw her first pitch Friday, it was apparent the Buccaneers were ready to go.
Welker led Blinn to a 2-0, one-hit shutout of No. 18 Bossier Parish Community College in the opener of a doubleheader, and the Bucs were in position for a sweep in game two before rain forced the contest to end in a 4-4 tie.
“It was good to see Peyton get off to a great start, and good that we found a way to scrape together a couple of runs late to give her the win,” Blinn head coach Rick Church said. “We had our opportunity in the second game, but we got squandered by the rain. This is still a good place to start and I’m looking forward to what’s next for this group.”
Welker, the Bucs’ most experienced arm from the 2023 season, dominated the Cavaliers with nine strikeouts while walking three on 116 pitches. She issued a pair of two-out walks in the top of the seventh inning but got the final Bossier Parish hitter of the game to swing at strike three to complete the shutout.
“My curveball and rise ball were working for me today, but it was really just about trusting myself and the defense behind me,” Welker said. “We were all impatient and ready to get the season started, and I think that showed in how we played today.”
(Pictured: Blinn sophomore pitcher Peyton Welker delivers a pitch against Bossier Parish Community College on Feb. 2, 2024)
Sophomore outfielder Alayna Calvillo had two hits for Blinn, the biggest of which came with a runner on third with one out. Calvillo slapped a line-drive single to left field and pinch runner Darian DeLeon came home for a 1-0 lead.
“I really just wanted to help out the team and help Peyton out,” Calvillo said. “She was dominating and working really hard out there to shut Bossier out, so I had to make something happen.”
Freshman first baseman Bailey Boetjer smacked an RBI double to center in the bottom of the sixth to give Welker further support.
In game two, the Bucs scored a pair of runs in the second inning and two more in the fourth before the Cavaliers produced a four-run rally in the fifth.
Sophomore outfielder Erynne Castillo reached on an error which allowed Boetjer to open the scoring, and sophomore second baseman Ripley Welker (Peyton Welker’s twin sister) scored on a wild pitch to make it 2-0
(Pictured: Blinn freshman Bailey Boetjer makes contact with a pitch during a game against Bossier Parish on Feb. 2, 2024)
Calvillo tripled in a run and freshman infielder Zaniah Coleman singled in Calvillo to make it 4-0.
Bossier Parish got to Blinn starting pitcher Paige Bunting for four earned runs on seven hits in the freshman’s collegiate debut. Bunting struck out six Cavaliers to go with one walk in 4 1/3 innings pitched. Freshman pitcher Bella De Los Santos allowed three hits and fanned two in 2 1/3 innings of relief.
The Buccaneers continue their season with a doubleheader at Temple College beginning at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 6, in Temple, Texas.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 45 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
