TEXAS-TYLER POST-GAME QUOTES:

Head Coach Mike Reed on the victory: “We came out with a couple of runs early with some big home runs and got ahead early and took some pressure off. Leading off the game with a home run is a great way to start. I thought we played much better defense today, much like we’ve played all year long. It was kind of a crazy way to end the game [with an Ohio Northern batted ball hitting one of their own runners], but it was the end of the game none the less.”

Reed on leading off the game with a home run: “It just reminded us of how we’ve played all year long. It sparked the team, and that’s what leadoff hitters are supposed to do. After yesterday, we were looking for an emotional lift, and to get it that early in the game was a big thing for us.”

Reed on leading off three separate innings with home runs by Richardson, Bell, and Wyly: “Our hitters did a great job of looking for the right pitch and trying to find the right sequence. We talked to them about pitch location, and they did a good job of waiting for the right spot.”

Reed on inserting reserve outfielder Courtney Carrizales late in the game: “Sometime you just go with your gut. She’s been taking great batting practice the last seven or eight practices. She’s a great defender, probably our best defender and arm, so we just felt like we had the lead and we just wanted to go with her defense.”

Senior All-American left fielder and Colorado native Roo Richardson on how she ended up attending Texas-Tyler: “My fiancé got a job in East Texas working in the oil fields. My cousin lives there, so I moved to go live with my cousin. I could pick between the two schools that are closest, and I looked at UT-Tyler’s stats and they had more wins.”

Reed on Richardson’s inquiry about the Texas-Tyler program: “Thank goodness for the internet. [Richardson] called me over Christmas and I remember the day I got the call. I told her that we don’t typically take a lot of transfers in the middle of the season. At that time, I Googled her name and saw her [junior college] stats, and my whole conversation change. I told her that we would be able to make room for her.”

Sophomore right-hander Kelsey Ainsworth on whether she knew she as facing a First-Team All-American in Ohio Northern’s Liz Decima as the potential tying run in the seventh inning: “I had no idea. I just look at the glove and look at the sign and throw my best every time.”


OHIO NORTHERN POST GAME QUOTES:

Head Coach Annette Shepherd on the game: “We knew it was going to be a good battle of two good teams. We out-them, and in the last inning, we really came through. We hit the ball well all day, but they were right at people for the most part. It was a great game. We had a lot of different people step up.”

Shepherd on ending the strangely with a hit base runner: “It’s tough. She hit a nice shot early in the game, but [Texas-Tyler] made a great play in the outfield. Her last at bat, she battled and kept the inning going. We had a couple of walks, we’re battling and working the count, and our senior [Danielle Goubeaux] gets up and rips a shot, but it’s right at our runner. We couldn’t have asked for a better effort.”

Shepherd on using her bench extensively throughout the contest: “We knew the strengths and weaknesses of our starters and our reserves. We were going for a win. I think we played 15-of-18 players, all of which have played throughout the year.”

Shepherd on Texas-Tyler leading off three separate innings with home runs: “Before the game, I told our team that for the majority of the season, we were second in the county in Division III in hitting, and UT-Tyler was leading the country in hitting. We switched roles here and there, and we said that if we make a mistake, extra bases would kill us. The best thing about those home runs was that there was no one on base.”

Senior left fielder Danielle Goubeaux on reaching the National Finals in her senior season: “It was definitely what I dreamed about when I came out of high school. When I joined this team as a freshman, we had a talented team, but definitely our goal was to make it deep into the NCAA Tournament. Making it to the National Finals is a once in a lifetime experience for me as a senior, and I was ecstatic when we won our regional.”

Goubeaux on ending her career with a single, but ending the game with a hit base runner: “I’m the one on my team that rips foul balls and forces my coach to jump out of the way. I just wanted to hit it hard, and when I don’t try to hard, I have success hitting the ball where it is pitched. I was excited when it went to the right side, but then I saw it hit our runner and I didn’t know what to think. I was still running, but then I realized that she was out. I’m happy that I ended my career with a hit and came through for my team, but I’m said that it hit a player.”

Shepherd on Ohio Northern’s record-breaking season: “Overall, our record was 39-6, one of those losses is in the regionals, and two of them were here. That is a great season, and it’s something to really to look forward to. This makes our younger players and our alumni get really involved and hungry to return here next year.”