Look: Weslaco sweeps Austin Bowie to move on to Texas 6A softball regional finals

CORPUS CHRISTI - On Friday, Weslaco's bats started to heat up late in their Game 1 win over Austin Bowie. 

The Lady Panthers carried that momentum into Game 2 on Saturday, hammering Austin Bowie 10-0 in five innings in the Texas Class 6A softball regional semifinals. The win gives a Weslaco a 2-0 series sweep.

“We knew that yesterday’s game was yesterday’s game, today’s game was going to be different,” Weslaco head coach Mario Rodriguez said. “We kind of had an idea of what they were going to do to us as far as pitching. Our girls came out ready to play.”

Weslaco moves on to play San Antonio O’Connor in the Regional Finals next week. The winner will earn a spot at the Texas Class 6A State Final Four Tournament that unfolds at Red and Charline McCombs Fields on June 3.

Weslaco’s Katia Reyes put together another brilliant performance in the circle, striking out five and keeping Austin Bowie off balance. She allowed just three hits.

Austin Bowie’s Emma Solis had 17 strikeouts on Friday but on Saturday the Lady Panthers were able to pick up some big hits to pull away early.

The Lady Panthers (34-6) were aggressive at the plate from the inception and utilized a pair of back-to-back walks that were issued to Alexis Solis and Jules Garcia. The duo would go on to score on a passed ball to take a 2-0 lead.

Romy Nunez crushed a two-run home run in the second inning to give the Lady Panthers a 4-0 lead.

“I just thought that pitch looked pretty and I swung,” Nunez said of her home run. “I really did not see where it went until I got to first base. I knew it was gone.”

Solis, who had been dominant in the first game, struggled with the heat. She was visibly dehydrated and had to take some time to recover in the fourth inning as water and a cold towel were brought to her. Solis, who kept cramping, tried to finish the game but was relieved in the fifth inning.

Weslaco went on to score five runs in the fifth inning as double by Alexis Solis and a single by Garcia made it a 9-0 ball game. Courtesy runner Kalysa Izaguirre rounded the bases and would score the run to send the Lady Panthers into the fifth round of the state playoffs. 

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