Mean Green Sweet 16: Softball's Top-10 Wins

3/23/2020 9:00:00 AM | Softball

Softball Becomes First Program with A Pair of Top-10 Wins In the Same Season in North Texas History

When Rodney DeLong took over the North Texas softball program in June of 2018, he wanted to help take the program to heights it had never been before. In his first year in 2019 he did just that by winning the program's first regular season Conference championship while beating a top-10 ranked Louisiana team during the first month of the season.

When 2020 rolled around there was still history to be written, and the Mean Green did just that by becoming the first team in school history across any sport to have a pair of wins over top-10 ranked teams in the same season, with both coming on the road. North Texas beat no. 8 Louisiana on February 8 for the second season in a row by a score of 2-1 and then knocked off no. 5 Oklahoma on February 29 by a score of 4-3. The win over Oklahoma was the first over the Sooners in program history and also the first win over a top-5 ranked opponent on the road by any North Texas athletics program.

North Texas - 2 | #10 Louisiana - 1 | February 8, 2020

A pitcher's duel was on hand in Lafayette as the Mean Green played the Ragin' Cajuns stride for stride throughout the entire affair. Bailey Tindell got the start for the Mean Green and went 3.1 innings, surrendering one run on three hits with two strikeouts. She gave way to Hope Trautwein in the fourth after a one-out double, The Cajuns would tie the game when the first batter Trautwein faced singled to center. The junior would retired the next 10 batters she faced to keep the Cajuns to just the one run on the one hit with a pair of strikeouts.

The teams took a 1-1 tie into the seventh inning and Kourtney Williams would pinch hit to lead off the frame.

T7 | Kourtney Williams will pinch hit for Gonzalez to lead off the inning.

??| 1 | 4 | 0 |
???| 1 | 4 | 1 | #GMG #MGSB
— North Texas Softball (@MeanGreenSB) February 8, 2020

T7 | WILLIAMS LEADS THE INNING OFF WITH A BOMB TO LEFT FIELD! THE MEAN GREEN TAKE THE LEAD!!!!

??| 2 | 5 | 0 |
???| 1 | 4 | 1 | #GMG #MGSB
— North Texas Softball (@MeanGreenSB) February 8, 2020

Williams' home run would send a wave of silence throughout the nearly sold out crowd in Lafayette and be all Trautwein needed to give the Mean Green the win. The win marked the second season in a row that North Texas was the first team to hand the Ragin' Cajuns their first loss of the season. The Mean Green were one of only six losses the Cajuns had on their record in 2019 during their 52-6 season. North Texas was also the only team to beat Louisiana at home during the 2020 season.

Our kids were not phased today by the atmosphere. To see our kids compete every pitch and provide timely hits, how Bailey [Tindell] handled the pressure and Hope [Trautwein] coming in and closing the door, that's big time and it's going to go a long way.

Head Coach Rodney DeLong

North Texas - 4 | #5 Oklahoma - 3 | February 29, 2020

Oklahoma had never lost a game to North Texas in softball and had also never lost a game during the Courtyard Marriott tournament until February 29, when both of those perfect records were tarnished. The Mean Green fell behind early in the first when the Sooners plated a pair of runs off of Ariel Thompson, but the freshman would settle down to just allow those two runs over 3.0 innings of work.

North Texas got on the board in the second inning on an RBI single to left from Camille Grahmann that scored Tayla Evans, and the Mean Green would take the lead one inning later on a two-run home run from Hanna Rebar. The Sooners would tie the game up in the fourth on an RBI single to center, but the Mean Green would not be denied the top-5 victory.

After Tayla Evans led the sixth inning off with a double before advancing to third on a wild pitch and Rebar reached on a walk. Kenzie Young came tot he dish with one away and drove a full count pitch high and deep enough into left field to plate Evans and put the Mean Green ahead for good.

Hope Trautwein would take over in the circle in the bottom half of the inning and surrendered just one base runner in the form of a leadoff walk in the seventh inning. A highlight reel play from Candain Callahan would end the game and give North Texas the victory.

It's really good to see our kids fight all day and not lay down. That's the whole key for us, if we're locked in and playing hard then we're tough to beat.

Head Coach Rodney DeLong