Game #22: No. 15 Texas A&M 5, Louisiana 1
Records: Texas A&M (15-7, 0-0), Louisiana (14-8, 0-0)
WP: Sydney Lessentine (6-1)
LP: Bethaney Noble (4-2)
Box Score
If you listen closely behind the crack of the bats, you can hear the cheering of little Aggie fans, dreaming to one day play for the Maroon & White.
For No. 15 Texas A&M, they’re playing to make fans everywhere proud, but deeper than that, they play first for the little girl inside of them who fell in love with the game.
It was a successful Sunday afternoon for head coach Trisha Ford and the Aggies, as they brought home a 5-1 victory over the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns to close the Texas A&M Invitational at Davis Diamond.
“We win because we play our type of softball,” Ford said. “It begins and ends in that circle.”
After a disappointing loss to the Ragin’ Cajuns on Friday, the Aggies dug deeper to find their rhythm for the remainder of the weekend. The Maroon & White showed up, seeing red and ready to play for themselves on Sunday.
For sophomore outfielder Kelsey Mathis, getting into her rhythm weighed heavily on the mental side of the game.
After an RBI single in the second, Mathis hit her first home run an inning later as the three-run blast brought the Aggies to a 5-0 lead.
“Recently I’ve been lacking confidence in the box and just trusting myself, so today I kind of just let it go,” Mathis said. “I knew I have to step up if I want to continue staying out there, so really just having confidence in myself.”
For some of the Aggies, confidence might just be the name of the game — being confident in the woman who is stepping into the box against every pitcher she faces.
As for the other side, for sophomore pitcher Sydney Lessentine, it's about remembering the little girl inside who fell in love with softball and making her proud.
“Victor (Pisano) yesterday told me to play for the little girl who fell in love with the game, so that's who was playing today,” Lessentine said.
Pisano is the mental performance coach for the Aggies. He graduated from A&M in 1991 and has had an incredible influence on the team on and off the field.
This A&M team works as a true unit. They play for each other and win for each other, no matter what it may take. Whether it's a switch of the catcher or running bases for their teammate, the Maroon & White play as one.
“They are capable of doing it, all of them are,” Ford said. “I thought Grace (Spakrs) did a great job yesterday. She came in and gave us what she needed to give us for us to win a ball game. Does she want to throw more innings? Probably, but that's not what her role is right now. They complement each other really well.”
Though the Ragin’ Cajuns were able to put up one run in the top of the sixth, the Aggies sent them back to Louisiana after an Aggie win.
“We get to play this game,” Ford said. “I think sometimes we take it for granted, and we can't take it for granted. You can’t take life for granted. I told them what if your career ends tomorrow… Can you look yourself in the mirror at the end of the day and say you gave everything you had?”
With a love for the game and remembering the girl who swung her bat for the first time, the Aggies will be back in Davis Diamond on Wednesday, March 3, to face Louisiana Tech.
