The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
UT Arlington
Williams and Thomas help sweep Softball past UT-Arlington
03.01.2006 | Softball
AUSTIN, Texas -- Shannon Thomas and Desiree Williams went a combined 9-for-15 with five runs scored and seven runs batted in as the second-ranked Texas Softball team swept UT-Arlington, 5-1 and 9-1 (6 inn), at McCombs Field on Wednesday night.
With the two victories, Texas (19-1) pushed its national-best winning streak to 17 games and won its ninth and 10th straight games against UTA (6-6).
Thomas went 5-for-7 in the two games - including multiple-hit efforts in both games to push her team-high multiple-hit mark to seven games - and tied the UT school record for stolen bases in a game with three in the night cap. Thomas' three hits in the second game were a career high for the freshman second baseman.
Williams went 4-for-8, connecting for a triple and a pair of home runs in the sweep. Both home runs - a pair of two-run shots - came in the second game, tying the school record for homers in a game, which Williams already held. Her five RBI in the second game tied the UT record for runs batted in during a game, which she now shares with four other former Longhorns.
In addition to her power at the plate, Williams also made her first career appearance in the circle, tossing the final inning of the second game before ending the contest with her second homer of the night.
With at least one hit in each game, Williams also extended the team's best hitting streak to seven games and boosted her season home run mark to seven, already the fourth-highest single-season total in Texas history.
Jacqueline Williams (3-for-6) and Tina Boutelle (3-for-8) each collected three hits on the night, while Crystal Saenz hit her first career home run - a two-run homer that barely stayed fair down the left-field line - in the second game.
The Longhorns return to action this weekend when they host the Time Warner Cable Texas Invitational, Friday-Sunday, March 3-5. UT welcomes Houston, Ole Miss and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for the three-day event. Play begins at noon on Friday when Houston takes on A&M-Corpus, followed by UH vs. Ole Miss at 2 p.m. Texas plays a split doubleheader beginning at 5 p.m., facing Corpus Christi and Ole Miss on Friday.
On Saturday, Ole Miss and TAMUCC square off at 11 a.m., followed by UT vs. Houston at 1 p.m. Semifinal play begins at 5 p.m. with the No. 2 seed facing the No. 3 seed, followed immediately by the No. 1 vs. No. 4 semifinal.
The consolation game will be played on Sunday at 10 a.m., and the championship game - pitting the winners of the semifinals against each other - will follow at 12:30 p.m.
Game 1: No. 2 Texas 5, UT-Arlington 1
UT took a 2-0 lead in the second inning on Jacqueline Williams' two-run double that scored Rachael Cook and Chez Sievers, who both reached on Maverick fielding errors. The Horns then posted single runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings to collect five runs. Thomas singled in Jacqueline Williams in the fourth, Megan Willis singled in Desiree Williams in the fifth and Desiree's first triple of her career scored Boutelle in the sixth. UTA posted its lone run in the top of the sixth when Katie Jones hit her first home run of the season off Cat Osterman. Osterman (11-0) collected the win, throwing a complete-game three hitter, allowing one run with 15 strikeouts and no walks. UTA's Jill Garro (3-3) took the loss, throwing a complete game while allowing five runs (two earned) on nine hits with five strikeouts and one walk. The Mavericks committed three errors in the loss. Willis (2-for-3) and Thomas (2-for-3) each collected multiple-hit games.
Game 2: No. 2 Texas, 9, UT-Arlington 1 (6 inn.)
The Longhorns took an early 3-0 lead in the first inning, when Desiree Williams singled in Boutelle, Willis reached to bring in Thomas and Jacqueline Williams brought in Kacie Gaskin, who was running for Desiree. After two-and-a-half scoreless innings, Desiree Williams pushed the UT lead to 5-0 in the bottom of the fourth when she sent a two-run homerun over the left-center fence to also score Boutelle. One inning later, Saenz snuck her first career home run over the left field fence, inches from the foul pole. The two-run shot also plated Jacqueline Williams, who led the inning off with a single, and gave UT a 7-0 lead. Desiree Williams relieved UT starter Meagan Denny (8-1) in the top of the sixth, and surrendered an unearned run, allowing the Mavericks to climb within six runs. However, after Thomas singled to lead off the bottom of the sixth, Williams brought her in with her second homer of the night, extending the Longhorn lead to eight runs and ending the game. Denny got the win, throwing 5.0 innings of two-hit shutout ball, striking out seven and walking one. Williams threw the final inning, allowing one unearned run on one hit while striking out one and hitting the first batter she faced. Laura Jones (2-1) took the loss after not recording an out in the first inning, allowing three runs on three hits in 0.0 official innings. Nicki Wilson entered in relief to throw 6.0 innings, surrendering six runs on eight hits while two strikeouts with two walks.
