By Van Wade

The Orange Leader

LIVINGSTON — An amazing season for the Bridge City Lady Cardinals came to an abrupt end at the hands of the Caldwell Lady Hornets in their best-of-three Class 4A Region III area round series at Livingston’s Texas Slam Academy Saturday.

After defeating the District 24-4A champion Lady Cardinals (29-4) in a 3-2 nailbiter in Game 1 Friday night, the Lady Hornets (29-6), District 21-4A runners-up, cruised to a clinching 9-0 victory Saturday as Caldwell will move on to the Region III quarterfinals.

The Lady Hornets finished with just six hits but all of them were timely.

Caldwell pitcher Casey Kauder went the distance, allowing just three Lady Cardinal hits while striking out six and walking four.

Kassidy Wilbur worked the first 5 1/3 innings for BC as she allowed five hits while fanning five and walking one. Peyton Trapp tossed the final 1 2/3 innings for BC.

The Lady Hornets struck for two runs in the bottom of the first.

Emily Telg opened with a double to left and scored when Blair Clayton took a Wilbur offering and belted it over the left centerfield wall to make it 2-0. No runs were scored again until the sixth when the Lady Hornets erupted for seven runs to put the game away.

In the top of the third, Baili Thibodaux drew a leadoff walk from Kauder and Faith Kaufman reached on a perfect bunt single.

Hannah Carpenter then hit a fly ball to left that was dropped but it ended up forcing Thibodaux out at third.

Wilbur hit a high fly ball that was dropped at second. Due to the infield fly rule, Wilbur was called out at first as the runners moved to second in third.

Kauder got out of the jam when she struck out Meagan Sourdellia.

The Lady Cardinals’ other hit came in the top of the seventh when Thibodaux crushed a Kauder offering for a leadoff double to deep center but the Lady Hornets came away unscathed.