On Saturday, Auburn Softball won 19-2 against the Pearl River Wildcats behind a four-RBI game by Kyla Stroud and two homers by senior Nelia Peralta.
Pearl River’s starting pitcher only went two innings as Auburn opened up scoring five runs in the second. These five runs would just be the start, as Auburn scored five more in the middle innings and nine runs in the eighth inning.
It was a slow first inning for both teams as they both got a single, but struggled to do anything else. Then, the flood gates opened in the second inning for Auburn, as Skylar Elkins and Icess Tresvik drew walks off Pearl River’s starting pitcher. Kyla Stroud hit a tight ball down the right foul ball line that got away from the right fielder as the Tigers scored their first two runs. Kyla Stroud got her first two RBIs as she slid into third easily, punishing Pearl River’s pitcher for two earlier walks. Ma’Nia Womack followed it with an extra base hit of her own, but it came off a fielding mistake. Pearl River caught Stroud in a pickle on the home base line, but eventually could not get her as she got back to third base safely.
It looked like Auburn would leave those two on base, as the next two batters struck out and popped out, but then Nelia Peralta stepped up to the plate.
The senior Peralta hit a three-run bomb, finally scoring those two base runners and putting Auburn up 5-0 early. A ground out two batters later would get Pearl River out of a disastrous inning.
Icess Trevik would not let Pearl River get any momentum as she went three innings and only gave up three hits total. She also struck out three hitters en route to a great outing before the end of the fall season.
After leaving two base runners stranded in the bottom of the third, Auburn would go to their bullpen in the fourth as SJ Geurin came in and gave up a single to the first batter she faced. She would bounce back though, as she would strike out one and force a soft contact groundout to end the inning. It looked like Pearl River’s reliever would get six straight big outs, but then Peralta came up in the fourth inning with two outs on the board. Peralta hit a deep fly ball to center field, hitting her second home run of the game. This home run put the Tigers up 6-0 at the end of the 4th inning as the following batter flew out. SJ Geurin would go two more quick innings, picking up two more strikeouts and getting more soft contact by batters, leading to easy infield outs.
Pearl River went back to their bullpen and brought in a third pitcher on the day, but it would not get any easier for her. After a quick flyout and comebacker, Auburn only had one base runner, but one more would get on base after a hard hit ball ate up the third baseman. Kyla Stroud stepped up to the plate and hit in those two runners on a double that bounced off the wall out in right center.
After a quiet bottom of the sixth inning, Chalea Clemmons came in and got a strikeout and two groundouts. This led to a slow top of the 7th, except for an error by shortstop Peralta. Clemmons got into the batter’s box in the bottom of seventh and got a single that went through the second baseman’s glove. Followed by a AnnaLea Adam’s walk, Ma’Nia Womack hit a single to shortstop and barely beat it out. That infield single would score the two baserunners to put the Tigers up 10-0 heading into the 8th.
Following three strikeouts by Clemmons, the Tigers started feasting in the bottom of the 8th.
Three straight walks left the bases loaded as Pearl River went into their bullpen again. A double off the glove of the first baseman and an error from the second baseman gave Auburn a 13-0 lead. Another mistake by Pearl River's 2nd baseman scores one and pushes the runners to second and third. The bases loaded again with a walk to Stroud, but Womack hit a run after the second baseman dropped the ball. Mistakes kept racking up for Pearl River, as the second baseman dropped the baseball again, but got the infield fly rule. A couple seconds later, Georgia Lessmann scored two off a single up the middle, making it 18-0. Another single made it 19-0. Pearl State got out of a nightmare inning off a fly ball to left field.
Pearl State finally scored their first two runs of the day in extra innings off an amazing catch in left field.
It was a great offensive performance towards the end of the team’s fall ball schedule before playing Florida State and Team Canada in two weeks on November 9th.
