An untimely sweep on March 29 left Blinn College softball head coach Rick Church looking for a swift response from his team.
The Buccaneers gave him two on Wednesday.
Blinn racked up 21 runs on 21 hits and cruised behind a pair of stellar pitching performances to sweep Region XIV South rival San Jacinto College-South 9-1 and 12-0 in a pair of five-inning ballgames at the Blinn Softball Field at Hohlt Park in Brenham, Texas.
“I was interested in seeing how we recovered from the doubleheader loss to Alvin (Community College) last Friday,” Church said. “We certainly came out and gave two very good responses to those setbacks and the first half of conference play on a great note.”
(Pictured: Blinn’s Peyton Welker delivers a pitch during a game against San Jacinto College-South on April 3, 2024)
Blinn (22-14-1, 7-5 Region XIV South) trailed for just one half inning after San Jacinto-South grabbed a 1-0 lead on a solo home run in the top of the first inning of game one.
The Bucs tied the game in the bottom of the second when sophomore Ripley led off the frame with a single and later scored on a passed ball.
After sophomore Alayna Calvillo tripled in a pair of runs in the third inning, Blinn seized the momentum for the rest of the day.
“I think we showed a lot of grit at the plate and weren’t selfish,” Calvillo said. “When bunts needed to be laid, we laid down some bunts; we executed some hit and runs; consistency at the plate and a willingness to pass the bat down the lineup and not put too much weight on one person’s shoulders was huge for us today.”
The Bucs totaled four runs in the third frame to jump ahead 5-1 and tacked one three more in the fourth before finishing the ballgame with a solo tally in the fifth.
Calvillo had three of Blinn’s 10 hits and finished a home run shy of hitting for the cycle. Freshmen Haley Hughes and Darian DeLeon had two hits apiece.
In the pitcher’s circle, sophomore Peyton Welker improved to 12-4 on the year with a five-inning shutout. The first-inning homer was the only blemish on an otherwise spectacular outing. She allowed five hits with four walks and four strikeouts.
“The offense scoring runs helped me get over that first inning,” Peyton Welker said. “(Catcher) Grace (Bracken) also worked with me to adjust to the strike zone and where I was missing, and she really helped me out today.”
In game two, sophomore Alyssa Boozy acclimated herself to a new spot in Blinn’s lineup with a career day. Hitting out of the seventh hole for the first time this season, the second-year Buc singled, doubled, and homered while driving in eight runs to lead her team to a second consecutive blowout win.
“We changed the hitting lineup a little bit today and maybe it worked,” Church said. “It was great to see Boozy get back to hitting the ball hard today.”
After freshman Bailey Boetjer’s RBI single opened the scoring in the bottom of the first, Boozy kept things going with a three-run double to center field.
With her team ahead 5-0 in the third, Boozy sent a three-run blast over the wall in left.
Hughes and Calvillo both scored on a steal of home in the fourth frame before Boozy capped the day by plating two more runs with a single.
Freshman pitcher Bella De Los Santos put the finishing touches on the day by completing the shutout in the top of the fifth.
For the game, Boetjer had three hits while Ripley Welker tacked on a pair.
De Los Santos improved to 6-3 after allowing three hits and three walks with five punchouts.
“If Bella is throwing her changeup with command, she’s going to keep hitters off rhythm and make her fastball and screwball more effective,” Church said. “That’s exactly what she did today.”
Wednesday’s victories pushed Church’s career win total to 998. With Church and the Bucs on the cusp of history, the team will travel to Alvin for a Region XIV rematch. The two teams will begin their doubleheader at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 6, in Alvin, Texas.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 45 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
