All things considered, no one in Hollywood could have written a better ending to Season Two of the AUSL. The two best teams in the league faced off for the No. 1 seed in the upcoming postseason. Here, the Utah Talons’ pitching has been stellar as the Chicago Bandits’ offense is hits all over the field.
Both teams played in a neutral site at Hillsboro Stadium in Oregon, the home of the Portland Cascade. It’s important to note it was due to air quality concerns in the Chicago area. Without further ado, here is a recap of the action from July 18 – 19.
Utah Talons Vs. Chicago Bandits
By and large, Game One was all about the circle as the first run of this came in extra innings, In the top of the eighth inning, Utah plated the run with a Sharlize Palacios sacrifice fly RBI for the 1 – 0. Chicago needed at least a run to extend the action. Thanks to an RBI single by Ailana Agbayani in the bottom of the inning, the Bandits did tie the game.
With two outs, Sami Williams stepped up to the dish in a tie and the winning run just 60 feet away in Bella Dayton. Williams, who is tied for second in the AUSL in hits (32), is the batter you would want in this situation. She did walk it off for the Bandits, but it was via the bunt to score Dayton and get the 2 – 1 victory.
For Chicago, Lexi Kilfoyl tossed her third complete game of the season. She allowed six hits as her record went to 6 – 0. By comparison, Montana Fouts went seven-and-two-thirds innings for Utah. Fouts allowed four hits while striking out 10 Bandits, putting her total to an AUSL-leading 63 strikeouts.
Utah Talons Vs. Chicago Bandits (Game Two)
Entering Game Two, the Bandits were in pole position for the top seed following the Game One walk-off win. Another victory secures that No. 1 seed, yet a victory for the defending champion Talons gives that coveted seed. Chicago got on the board in the bottom of the first inning as Skylar Wallace stole home for the early 1 – 0 lead. Wallace leads the league with six steals.
Credit: AUSL
However, Utah tied the game in the top of the third with a Jayda Coleman solo home run. Furthermore, the Talons added a run in the sixth with a Jordan Woolery bunt RBI. What’s more, Utah plated another run in the seventh as Kailey Wyckoff scored on a fielding error.
In the end, pitcher Georgina Corrick and the Talons cliched the No.1 seed in the postseason with a 3 – 1 win over the Bandits. Corrick threw her fourth complete game of the season, allowing the lone run and struck out four. The four complete games are tied for the second-most in the AUSL this season.
AUSL Playoff Positioning
On one hand, the Talons will face the winner of the play-in game in a series beginning on July 25 at Davis Stadium in College Station, Texas. Speaking of the play-in game, the Bandits will face either the Cascade or the Oklahoma City Spark on July 23. This game will also take place in College Station.
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