HOUSTON, Texas – At times, putting runs on the board has been an issue for Blinn College softball but the Buccaneers didn’t have that problem Feb. 15 in a 7-0 victory over Iowa Western Community College in Houston.

Blinn showed the ability to bounce back for the second consecutive day after losing the first game of the day 4-3 to Wallace State Community College-Hanceville. The Buccaneers split their games on Feb. 15 and ended the San Jacinto College Tournament with a 2-2 record and are now 8-7 overall.

“We showed a lot of character after losing the first game and then coming back to win the second,” said Blinn head coach Rick Church. “We have a tough tournament coming up and we hope to compete better.”

Avery Mullendore had a solid game against Iowa Western with three singles while knocking in two runs. Delilah Pacheco also had three singles while Jaiden Rawls and Katie Andrie each picked up two hits as Blinn pounded out a total of 14 hits in the win.

Rawls started the game in the circle and only allowed five hits in seven innings to pick up the win.

Blinn got a run early against Iowa Western when Jazzmin Fritz was able to hit a sacrifice fly to score Andrie for a 1-0 lead. The third inning is where the Buccaneers created a big lead as Pacheco was able to score the first run of the inning after a single by Mullendore for a 2-0 advantage.

Jordan Wilkins scored the third run after a single by Andrie to center and then Lara Cecchetti singled in Rawls for a 4-0 lead. Seeley Orsak brought in the final run of the inning with a single to left to score Andrie for a 5-0 lead.

The Buccaneers were able to add an insurance run in the sixth when Mullendore singled and then came around to score on a single by Wilkins to left for a 6-0 lead. Mullendore was able to drive in the seventh run in the seventh inning with a single to right to score Tori Gleason to make the final 7-0.

Orsak came up with the big hit for Blinn against Wallace State in the opening game of the day but it was not enough for the win. A home run by Orsak brought in three runs but Wallace State was still able to grab a 4-3 victory.

Wallace State scored single runs in the second, fourth and fifth but the most important single run came in the seventh that made the difference in the game.

Trailing 4-0 with only one out left in the seventh, Blinn made a final attempt at the lead. Cecchetti singled to keep the game alive and Courtney White reached on an error. With two on, Orsak nailed a home run to left to get the Buccaneers within a run at 4-3 but that would be the final run scored in the Blinn loss.

Blinn will finally get a home game Feb. 18 against Iowa Western Community College, which will be a double header starting at 2 p.m. The Buccaneers played 15 games away from home before finally getting to play on a familiar field.

Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 30 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.