The Blaze needed a win in the worst way after dropping eight straight games to fall to 1-10 in the first half of the inaugural Athletes Unlimited Softball League season.
But thanks in large part to their third baseman, they will go into the two-week break in high spirits.
Ana Gold launched a walk-off two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning to trigger a run-rule victory over the Bandits as the Blaze beat the team with the best record in the AUSL at Wilkins Stadium in Wichita, 11-3.
ATHLETES UNLIMITED SOFTBALL LEAGUE
But that wasn't the only shining moment Gold had on Monday night -- she made a sparkling defensive play at third base to stop a potential Bandits rally in its tracks. With the Blaze leading, 5-3, in the top of the sixth inning, the Bandits brought the tying run to the plate with one out. Bubba Nickles-Camarena smashed a liner over the bag at third and Gold snared it on a full-extension dive to her right, robbing Nickles-Camarena of extra bases and potentially saving a run on the play.
The Bandits didn't score, setting the stage for more Gold heroics in the bottom of the frame, when she crushed a 3-2 pitch from Bandits left-hander Taylor McQuillin over the fence in left field to put the Blaze up by eight runs, triggering the run rule.
It was Gold's first professional home run after a sensational career at Duke, something she said she had been waiting for.
"It feels awesome," Gold said after the game. "I've kind of been waiting for that one a little bit. Just trying to string together base hits and hit the ball hard. Good things happen when we do that."
Good things were happening for the Blaze all evening, particularly at the plate. Gold was far from the only contributor with her homer and a single earlier in the game.
After the Bandits jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a pair of first-inning home runs by Morgan Zerkle and Skylar Wallace, the Blaze answered with a run in the bottom of the first on a solo homer from Korbe Otis. The Blaze then scored four in the second on a two-run single by Aliyah Andrews, an RBI single by Aubrey Leach and a sacrifice fly by Danielle Gibson Whorton.
The Blaze didn't score again until the sixth, but when they did, they put the game away. Four consecutive doubles by Kayla Kowalik, Otis, Leach and Gibson Whorton preceded Gold's game-ending blast.
But Gold added the exclamation point, and it was fitting given how hot she's been at the plate. Including the homer on Monday night, Gold is five for her last eight with two singles, a double and a triple.
All in a day's work for Gold, who hopes that her long homer will mark a turning point for the Blaze.
"We want to win every game, every pitch," she said. "That doesn't always roll our way, but we haven't stopped and we haven't given up. And we just know that the best is yet to come for us."
Talons 8, Volts 6
The Talons staved off a late comeback attempt by the Volts to sweep the four-game series at Love's Field in Norman, Okla. Jadelyn Allchin led the way with a two-run single in the second inning and another RBI single in the sixth. Ali Aguilar also had a pair of hits, including an RBI double in the second. Sierra Sacco delivered another RBI double in the sixth.
Down by six entering the bottom of the seventh inning, the Volts rallied for four runs, but ultimately fell short of salvaging the series finale. Amanda Lorenz had a big game, driving in four of her team's six runs in the contest -- she went 3-for-4 with a double and two homers.