The Cougars dropped two games in the double elimination tournament to finish the season at 54-10.
WNCC fell 4-1 to
Even with the two losses, WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff couldn’t be happier with how her team achieved success this season, including becoming one of the final 16 teams in the nation.
“There are 16 great ball clubs and 300-plus great athletes,” Winn-Ratliff said. “There is no bad team here and you can’t have an off day. I don’t think it was our best day of softball. We have performed much better then we did today. But we can’t be disappointed about being here. If we had one bad day in our season, it was today. Unfortunately, it had to be at the national tournament.”
The tournament definitely was a learning experience in many ways for the team, as they know what it now takes to be a championship ball team.
“You have to fight every game you are in to just get here and this team did that this year,” the coach said. “Now, they know what to do when they get here and they know what the teams are like. The teams are tough and they play hard.”
The weather also might have played a factor in the team’s performance. The Cougars played in 90-degree heat with humidity levels in the 80s.
“The heat might have got to us a little bit,” Winn-Ratliff said. “Not to make any excuses, it is a whole different environment of what we are used to playing in. It is a big venue and I am proud to be a part of it.”
The Cougars, however, did battle in the first game before falling 4-1 to
The Cougars, fought back in the sixth and seventh inning, getting to winning pitcher Jennifer Sexton. In the sixth, Mandy Pounds led off by drawing a walk. After Lauren Mills sacrificed Pounds, the speedy freshman scored on a Jessie McNabb double. Lauren Bourdon followed by stroking a single to centerfield, only to have McNabb tagged out at the plate to end the inning.
WNCC tried to make a seventh-inning comeback. With one out, Kara Ryman singled followed by Alec Voci reaching base on a fielder’s choice to put runners at first and second. That was it as Sexton struck out the final two batters to end the game.
Sexton, a sophomore from Harvest,
Kelsey Garner took the loss in the circle. The freshman scattered six hits, while walking six and striking out four.
In the second game, the Cougars couldn't find an answer to
The Cougars' only hit of the game came in the fourth inning when Jessie McNabb hit a shot up the middle. That, though, was it for the Cougar's offense.
Tallahassee
“We made some adjustments in the sixth inning, but it was a little late,” Winn-Ratliff said. “We started to get to their pitcher, but we had one bad inning in the Wallace game and that is all they needed.
While it is disappointing for now to watch the rest of the tournament from the stands, Winn-Ratliff said they hopefully be back to the national tournament in future years.
The Cougars lose 10 sophomores that paved the way for the team this year. It was those players that set the tone for the championship run.
“It has been a special all year and I am especially proud of them [the sophomores],” Winn-Ratliff said. “It was sad today to see the 10 sophomores in their blue and gold uniform one last time. But the reality that it is, the kids played hard all year and lived up to my expectations. We now know what it takes in the program to be national title contenders. Those expectations will be there every year for us.”
“This has been a great year for us and I want to thank everybody that has supported us and I hope we can continue to build a winning program and continue to have success with
WNCC 000 001 0 – 1 5 1
Wallace (65-8) 004 000 x – 4 6 0
WP – Sexton, LP – Garner; 2B – WNCC (McNabb), Wallace (Ashley Smith).
WNCC (54-10) 000 00 -- 0 1 1
WP -- Reyes; LP -- Garner; 2B -- TCC (Heather Maulden, Mary Helen Tyler 2, Alayshia Jarrell; HR -- TCC (Tyler).
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