The Carolina Blaze returned home to face the Chicago Bandits for the first of a two-game series. The Bandits outlasted the Blaze 7-6 in an eight-inning game. Morgan Zerkle hit the game-winning RBI double off Keilani Ricketts to score Skylar Wallace in the top of the eighth.
Karlyn Pickens got the ball and had a rocky first inning. The Bandits loaded the bases with no outs after Wallace and Sami Williams led off with back-to-back singles, and Mac Barbara reached on a hit by pitch. Chicago scored 2 runs before Pickens got out of the inning with 2 strikeouts.
Kat Sandercock is one of the most efficient pitchers in the game. The Blaze came out with an aggressive approach, but it ended in a quick five-pitch bottom of the first inning. Sandercock rolled right into the bottom of the second and struck out the side.
Pickens had a better second inning, with only Wallace reaching. The third inning started with a strikeout of Barbara, and then three consecutive singles were given up. But with solid defense, the Blaze escaped without damage. Through three innings, the Bandits accumulated 6 hits.
Jordyn Rudd-Lee, Aubrey Leach and Dakota Kennedy broke through with three consecutive one-out singles in the bottom of the third to load the bases. Then, with two outs and an 0-2 pitch, Baylee Klingler cleared the bases with a 3 RBI triple to put the Blaze up 3-2. Carolina wasn’t done, and Valerie Cagle followed with an RBI double to score Klingler to extend the lead to 4-2.
However, the Bandits remained dialed in on Pickens and answered. Ailana Agbayani led off the fourth with a single, and Wallace tied the game with a 2-run home run. After a Williams double, Pickens exited the game for Ricketts. The Bandits went on to take a 5-4 lead on a throwing error as Zerkle and Williams were attempting a double steal. Jocelyn Erickson followed with an RBI single to score Zerkle. Chicago moved on to the bottom of the fourth with a 6-4 lead.
Sandercock bounced back with a three-pitch bottom of the fourth to keep things where they were. She gave up a leadoff single to Jenna Laird, but Devyn Netz grounded into a double play, and Rudd-Lee grounded out on a first-pitch swing. Through four innings pitched, Sandercock totaled 45 pitches, and 35 of them were strikes.
After Ricketts retired the top of the fifth cleanly, Kennedy got on with a one-out double and came home on a Klingler two-out RBI double to make it 6-5 Bandits. The Blaze scored 5 runs in a game for the first time since June 29 at Oklahoma City.
Ricketts kept things clean for the Blaze and gave the offense opportunities to battle back. It was the best offensive outing this Blaze team has had in weeks.
After Ricketts and Sandercock both retired the sixth in order, the seventh inning brought excitement. In the bottom of the seventh, Sandercock tried to go down and in on Leach and lost the battle. Leach launched a game-tying solo home run to right field. That sparked a change to Lexi Kilfoyl in the circle, who is also set to take the start tomorrow.
Kilfoyl finished the inning without further damage and extended the game into the eighth. Then, Wallace began on second. Ricketts walked Williams intentionally and then struck out Jessica Clements. That brought Zerkle to the plate, and she capitalized with the winning RBI double to score Wallace and give the Bandits the 7-6 lead.
