No. 14 Gamecocks Fall to No. 1 Texas A&M in SEC Quarterfinals

ATHENS, Ga. – The No. 14/12 South Carolina (40-15) softball team fell to No. 1/1 Texas A&M (44-9) 12-4 in five innings Thursday night (May 8) in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament.

The Gamecocks jumped out to an early lead in the top of the second. Lexi Winters drew a leadoff walk, and two outs later scored on Abigail Knight’s single to right center. The Aggies got a pair of two-run home runs in the bottom of the inning to take the lead.

Carolina cut the deficit in half in the third on Karley Shelton’s fourth home run of the season.

A leadoff walk in the fourth by Ella Chancey led to another South Carolina run. A single from Brooke Blankenship moved her to third before a fielder’s choice off the bat of Knight brought her home. TAMU added a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the inning.

Quincee Lilio connected on her first home run of the season to lead off the top of the fifth. The Aggies would answer with six runs in the bottom of the fifth to end the game.

Sam Gress (12-9) started for Carolina, striking out a pair while allowing four runs on five hits in 1 2-3 innings.

The Gamecocks now wait to hear their name called Sunday during the NCAA Selection Show that begins at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.

For the latest on South Carolina Softball, visit GamecocksOnline.com or follow the team’s social media accounts on Twitter @GamecockSoftbll, Facebook /GamecockSoftball, and Instagram @GamecockSoftball.