The Brownwood Lady Lions struck for three runs in their first at-bat, added four more in the fifth inning and turned in one of their better defensive performances of the season to secure an 8-3 victory over the Glen Rose Lady Tigers Tuesday night in the District 6-4A softball opener for both teams.
“The girls rose to the challenge and came out hot tonight,” said Lady Lions coach Cherita Munguia. “That was our goal after playing a good Gatesville team last week. We knew we couldn’t be stagnant in our innings and we couldn’t have errors that the other team capitalized on. We were nervous a little early and bobbled some balls, but stuck with them. And the energy in the dugout was electric and that transitioned into what you saw on the scoreboard.”
After pitcher Tynlea Wilson stranded a pair of base runners in the top of the first inning, the Lady Lions made the most of their offensive opportunity in the bottom half to seize the early edge.
Mia Lopez led off with a double, Jeniffer Romero followed with a single and an RBI sacrifice fly from Chloe Walls pushed Brownwood in front, 1-0. Kyleigh Caperton then beat out a bunt to plate Romero with the second run, while Caperton later stole third base and a wild throw on the play allowed her to score the third run.
The Lady Lions extended the advantage to 7-0 in the fifth as, with one out, Lopez, Romero and Walls all singled in succession to load the bases. Caperton followed with an RBI ground out for a 5-0 lead, then Cecilia Rodriguez reached on a booted ball that permitted Romero and Walls to cross the plate.
“Today was tough because we knew the wind was going to be an issue,” Munguia said. “We had to keep our shoulders driving through the ball because we weren’t going to hit it out, and sometimes you want to swing for the fences. But we adjusted to the wind and to the pitching.”
Wilson – who struck out two and walked one – carried a shutout in the sixth inning as she stranded 10 base runners.
“Tynlea came out hot and we were working on positioning the ball and working ahead in counts, which is something we’ve been struggling with,” Munguia said. “Chloe did a good job framing pitches and even though Tynlea got tired late, everybody on defense stepped up behind her.”
After Glen Rose crept within 7-1 in the top of the sixth, the Lady Lions added their final run in the bottom of the inning. Walls’ two-out RBI single brought home Peyton Pena, who walked earlier in the frame.
The Lady Tigers tacked on two more runs in their final at-bat in the top of the seventh, but the rally ended there.
Brownwood (7-8, 1-0), which missed the playoffs a year ago, and reigning district champion Glen Rose (10-14, 0-1) will meet again at 7 p.m. Friday on the Lady Tigers’ home turf. The 6-4A schedule will feature home-and-home contests each week, opposed to playing the full schedule once before starting over.
“It will be interesting coaching-wise,” Munguia said. “We have to make adjustments in a short amount of time. It’s interesting the way the district is scheduled this year. We just have to come out and play the way we did tonight.”
