Nickles and Wallace each eclipsed 200 in the win after scoring four of Team Ocasio’s five runs. Nickles earned MVP 1 honors after her three-run hit in the third inning gave Team Ocasio a 3-0 lead. Wallace, the game’s MVP 2 pick, followed with a solo hit to right field in the fifth inning to increase the lead to 4-0.
Ocasio, on the other hand, only managed four hits in her 4.0 innings and was named MVP 3. She also improved her record in the circle to 5-1. The former Florida star player also recorded a strikeout and finished the evening with 188 leaderboard points.
Megan Faraimo threw the last three innings and secured her first save of the season.
Outfielder Megan Wiggins Team Corrick led the offense with two hits, while three other players added a base hit. Captain Georgina Corrick suffered the loss in the circle after allowing four runs on five hits in 5.0 innings with five strikeouts.
KEY MOMENT
Home runs from Nickles and Wallace helped Team Ocasio to a 4-0 lead. Rookie catcher Sharlize Palacios ended Team Ocasio’s attempt at a shutout with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth inning before corner infielder Nadia Taylor responded with an RBI single in the top of the seventh inning.
LEADERBOARD INFLUENCE
Ocasio and Corrick swapped places on the leaderboard due to the result of the opening game of Week 5. Ocasio, the 2021 AU Pro Softball Championship Season titleholder, now ranks second, just 48 points behind the outfielder Amanda LorenzWallace also rose back into the top four and is in third place with 1,410 points.
GAME NOTES
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Midfielder Sister Bates was named Defensive Player of the Game, her first award of the season. She is the sixth player to win the award in 25 games this summer.
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The teams have now won 4 of 23 captain’s challenges after 25 games this season … Team Ocasio initiated a captain’s challenge in the bottom of the fourth inning when outfielder Morgan Zerkle was hit by a pitch…The challenge was successful after the play was reversed and Zerkle received no credit for being hit by the pitch.
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Ocasio now holds a 10-9 overall record as captain in championship seasons and is the fourth player in league history to record 10 or more wins as a team leader.
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Taylor is the seventh player in Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball history to appear in 100 games after starting as a first baseman… It was the 86th start of Taylor’s career.
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Midfielder Aubrey Leach extended her hitting streak to 10 straight games with a triple down the right field line in the fifth inning… Leach has hit a surefire hit in 11 of 13 games this season, which puts her in a league-leading tie with Bates.
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Wiggins notched her first multi-hit game of the season after hitting two singles… Wiggins has a safe hit in four of her last five games.
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Jug Georgina Corrickwho was making her debut as team captain, had her personal winning streak of eight games broken with Friday night’s loss… It was her first setback since August 2nd.
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Catcher Gwen Svekis has won her last four games, including Team Ocasio’s victory on Friday night… The longtime AU veteran now holds a championship-season overall record of 49-25.
GAME MVPS
- #1 – Bubba Nickles (Team Ocasio, +60)
- #2 – Skylar Wallace (Team Ocasio, +40)
- #3 – Aleshia Ocasio (Team Ocasio, +20)
- Defensive MVP – Sis Bates (Team Corrick, +20)
