The Temple College softball team traveled to Hillsboro on Thursday to complete their North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference series with Hill College.
The day started out with a pitchers' duel and ended with Temple's tenacious offense, as the Leopards swept the Rebels for the second time in three days.
Scores of the day were 2-0 and 14-2 (five innings)
The Leopards improved to 39-5 overall and 19-1 in the NTJCAC standings, with a two-game lead on MCC, five-game advantage over third-place Grayson, and six-game lead over Weatherford in fourth place with eight games remaining.
In the opener, the game was scoreless over the first four innings between Izzy Garcia and Madison Mauricio.
The Leopards found the run column in the fifth inning. KyLeigh Cambiano singled to start the inning. She stole second base and advanced to third on an error. Brooklyn Walton dropped down a bunt that she beat for a single that scored Cambiano.
Temple picked up an insurance run in the sixth inning. Reese Cottrell walked to start the inning, and Jess Reyes came in to run. With two outs, Reyes stole second during pinch hitter Maddi Durnell's at-bat. Two pitches later, Durnell blasted a double to left field to score Reyes and put Temple up, 2-0.
The Leopards had the bases loaded with two outs in the top of the seventh but could not push across a run.
Garcia retired the last 15 batters she faced in her seven-inning, complete game victory. She allowed two hits, one apiece to Halle Joy and Shyla Thompson, and struck out six. Garcia helped her cause in the circle with two hits on offense.
Walton added two hits for Temple.
The Leopards wasted no time in reaching the scoreboard in game two against Hill starter Ella Sharp. Walks to Lexi Dudeczka and Cottrell set up three consecutive RBI doubles by Kaiyah Ratu, Garcia, and Cambiano that scored Lexi Dudeczka, Cottrell, Ratu, and Garcia respectively to give Temple a 4-0 lead with one out.
Joy's RBI single off Kat Kram scored Kaia Cobb in the bottom of the first to put the Rebels on the scoreboard for the first time in the series.
Jasmine Benavidez walked to start the second inning advanced to third on a pair of groundouts. Three consecutive walks forced home the Temple shortstop to extend the Leopards' lead back to four runs. Marli Kennedy's bases-loaded walk scored Maycee Griffin. Walton's RBI single scored Cambiano, Dudeczka's bases-loaded walk forced home Ryley Litchfield, Benavidez's bases-loaded walked score Kennedy, and Cottrell's two-run double scored Walton and Dudeczka to give Temple an 11-1 lead.
Joy drove home her second run of the game with a double that scored Cobb to reduce the margin to nine runs in the bottom of the third.
Cottrell and Garcia hit solo homers in the top of the fifth. Kennedy added an RBI double that scored Durnell to put Temple up 14-2.
Temple blasted 11 hits, eight of went for extra bases, walked nine times, and Kennedy was hit by a pitch.
Cottrell drove n three runs and had two hits. Garcia, Cambiano, and Kennedy drove in two runs.
Kram picked up the win, having pitched three innings innings, allowed two runs on four hits, walked three, and struck out two. Cottrell pitched two innings and struck out one.
Joy had two of Hill's four hits and drove in both runs, scored by Cobb.
With the series sweep, the Leopards outscored the Rebels 40-2, and outhit Hill, 47-8.
The Leopards win streak is at ten, having outscored opponents 103-8, and having outhit teams during the stretch, 120-26.
TC has won 19 of its last 20 games, 27-1 in their last 28 games and 34-3 since their back-to-back walk-off losses at Odessa College Feb. 7-8.
No. 4 Temple will play No. 6 McLennan Community College starting on Wednesday at Bosque River Ballpark.