LONGVIEW, TX -- The fourth-ranked Blinn Buccaneers blasted six home runs here Friday on their way to wins in their first two games at the Region XIV Crossover.

Blinn defeated Paris 1-0 on a solo shot from freshman Tiffani McKnight, then hit five more homers in a 13-4 victory over Texarkana. That game ended via mercy rule after six innings.

After McKnight’s first-inning home run against Paris, the Buccaneers went nine consecutive innings without scoring. But after the Bucs behind Texarkana 3-0, McKnight tied the game with a three-run home run and Thomasina Garza added a solo shot.

Shannon Sain hit a solo home run in the fourth and Brooke Riemann and McKnight followed with three-run home runs to put the game away after just six innings.

“We weren’t taking very good swings and then we finally got dialed in and got people on base,” Blinn head coach Rick Church said.
McKnight finished with three home runs for the day, continuing to display the power stroke that smacked two homers at the Temple Round Robin last weekend.

“She’s been making better pitch selection and boy, if they make a mistake middle in then she’ll hurt them,” Church said. “She’s getting better at laying off bad pitches and becoming really consistent at the plate.”

Sophomore pitcher Kaci Federwisch earned the win against Paris with a two-hit shutout.

“Her drop ball and screwball were working really well and she’s always consistent with her change-up,” Church said. “Her hard pitches had good movement on them today.”

Shannon Sain improved to 6-0 with the win over Texarkana.
The Buccaneers continue tournament play Saturday with three games – 11 a.m. vs. Lon Morris, 3 p.m. vs. Navarro and 7 p.m. vs. Trinity Valley. Blinn will play Northeast Texas at 9 a.m. and Midland at 11 a.m. on Sunday