Recap: Nickles secures 180 points with walk-off hit in 9-8 win

Eric Rhew

Aug 06, 2022

ROSEMONT, Ill. — A seven-run deficit with two innings to play? No problem for Team Jaquish.

After falling behind by an 8-1 margin in the sixth inning, Team Jaquish plated four runs in each of its final two trips to the plate to secure a 9-8 victory over Team Harshman in the first game of Saturday’s Athletes Unlimited Softball doubleheader at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex.

The victory allowed Team Jaquish to even its Week Two record at 1-1, while Team Harshman suffered its second straight loss.

Outfielder Bubba Nickles claimed 180 leaderboard points to lead all players after being named MVP 1 for her efforts. The former UCLA standout went 3-for-5 with three singles, including the game-winning hit in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Catcher Taylor Edwards garnered MVP 2 distinction after driving in four runs with a pair of hits, including a three-run home run in the fourth inning. Edwards tallied 120 points to anchor Team Harshman’s efforts.

Infielder Andrea Filler rounded out the MVP trio after securing the third MVP honor with a three-hit game, closing play with 150 leaderboard points.

Relief pitcher Maggie Balint earned her first professional win in relief for Team Jaquish, allowing one run on three hits over 1.2 innings. Rookie Danielle Watson took the loss for Team Harshman after giving up two runs on three hits in 0.1 innings.

HOW IT HAPPENED

After closing the gap to 8-5 with four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Team Jaquish completed the comeback by scoring four more runs in the seventh. The first three hitters reached base before a sacrifice fly by second baseman Janae Jefferson trimmed the gap to 8-6. Two batters later, catcher Sahvanna Jaquish tied the game with a single down the left field line before Nickles’ single to center field ended the game.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

Nickles’ 180-point performance moved her into third place on the leaderboard with 610 points, an improvement of five places. She also stands 12 points behind Jaquish for second place heading into Saturday’s second game between Team Mulipola and Team Eberle.

GAME NOTES

Team Jaquish left 12 runners on base, including the bases loaded in each of the first three innings.
Nickles’ streak of three straight games with a home run came to an end.
Pitcher Rachel Garcia threw 130 pitches over 5.1 innings for Team Harshman, allowing five runs on eight hits with five walks and five strikeouts.
Jaquish was caught stealing in the fourth inning, becoming the second player to be caught this year.
Filler, Nickles and first baseman Tori Vidales all registered a three-hit game, becoming the fifth, sixth and seventh players this year with a three-hit performance.
A total of 17 runs were scored in Saturday’s game, upping the season total to 78 runs through nine games … Aspiration has committed to planting 10 trees for every run scored as part of its “Aspiration Round the Bases” initiative.