Recap: Team Taylor surges to victory as Mulipola crushes late grand slam

Eric Rhew

Jun 20, 2023

ROSEMONT, Ill. — All it took was one swing for Monday night’s Athletes Unlimited AUX Softball contest between Team Taylor and Team Filler to feel like the Wide World of Sports with the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

A seven-run rally by Team Taylor, including a grand slam from catcher Dejah Mulipola, completed a seventh-inning comeback as the squad earned a 7-4 triumph over Team Filler to close the doubleheader at Parkway Bank Sports Complex.

The win allowed Team Taylor (1-2) to earn its first win of Series Two while Team Filler also owns a 1-2 mark after suffering its second consecutive loss.

Mulipola, who blasted her league-leading fourth home run of the season, secured MVP 1 honors and 160 leaderboard points after her game-deciding hit. She was one of seven different players to register a hit for Team Taylor in the come-from-behind win.

Pitcher Georgina Corrick, the MVP 2 selection, secured her first win in the circle this season after allowing two earned runs on four hits over 6.0 innings with six strikeouts. Now 1-1 on the season, Corrick accrued 152 leaderboard points in the victory.

The loss spoiled an outstanding effort from pitcher Rachel Garcia, who claimed MVP 3 distinction in the setback for Team Filler. Garcia carried a shutout into the seventh inning and finished the night with a no-decision after conceding three runs on seven hits over 6.0 innings with a season-high seven strikeouts.

Three different players posted a pair of hits in the loss for Team Filler, including Garcia’s 2-for-3 outing.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Trailing by a 4-0 margin heading into the final inning, Team Taylor plated seven runs on five hits while sending 11 hitters to the plate. The squad used four hits and two walks to get its first six hitters on base and score three runs before Mulipola’s 309-foot blast over the center field fence provided a 7-4 advantage. Corrick struck out the first two hitters in the bottom of the frame before allowing a walk to catcher Taylor Edwards, but she induced a flyout by middle infielder Andrea Filler to end the game.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

Despite the loss, Garcia finished the night holding the top spot on the leaderboard with 840 points on the strength of 142 points against Team Taylor. She will enter the final day of Series Two with a 38-point edge over middle infielder Aubrey Leach.

GAME NOTES

Team Taylor and Team Filler combined to score 11 runs during Monday’s nightcap, extending the league’s season scoring total to 131 runs through 10 games … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every run scored as part of its ‘Round the Bases’ initiative.
Team Taylor challenged an out call against designated player Nadia Taylor to end the top of the fifth inning, which was unsuccessful … Teams are now 1-for-9 (.111) in captain’s challenges this season.
Team Taylor’s seven runs in the seventh inning equaled the AUX record for runs in an inning … Team Zerkle had seven runs in the first inning against Team Mulipola on June 14.
Garcia is the second player this season to pitch into the seventh inning after Haylie Wagner threw 6.2 innings in a June 15 win over Team Garcia.
Corrick threw 5.0 innings or more for the second time this year … She posted 5.0 innings against Team Mulipola on June 15.
Garcia’s seven strikeouts are the most by any pitcher this season … Garcia also has posted five or more strikeouts in three of her six outings.
Outfielder Victoria Hayward extended her hitting streak to four games in a row with a single in the top of the third inning … Hayward has hit safely in 4-of-7 games this season.
Catcher Delanie Wisz has a three-game hit streak after singling up the middle in the second inning.
Outfielder Haylie McCleney has a hit in five consecutive games after leading off the first inning with a single through the left side.
Outfielder Amanda Lorenz ran her hitting streak to three games in a row with her single in the first inning … She also earned her third multi-hit game of the campaign after a 2-for-4 performance, including an RBI double in the fifth inning.
Filler has now hit safely in 5-of-7 games this season following her 2-for-4 performance in the second game of Monday’s doubleheader.