Isa Alejandro's walk-off grand slam lifts Flower Mound Marcus over Plano

Alejandro smacked a game-winning home run with a full count and two outs, as the Marauders walked off in a 7-4 victory over Plano to keep their playoff hopes alive

FLOWER MOUND, Texas — From their first at-bat Wednesday night, the Flower Mound Marcus Marauders trailed Plano in a pivotal matchup of District 6-6A teams seeking to punch their ticket to the playoffs.

Despite gradually chipping away at their deficit throughout the game, the Marauders still faced a 4-3 Wildcats' lead entering the bottom of the seventh inning.

Marcus was down to its final out with runners on first and second base following a hit-by-pitch and intentional walk to start the home half of the frame, as senior Faith Drissel stepped up to the plate representing the potential game-tying run.

Drissel punched a ground-ball single through a gap in the infield into left field to load the bases for senior Isa Alejandro.

With a full count and two outs, Alejandro belted a walk-off grand slam that lifted Flower Mound Marcus to a dramatic 7-4 home win over Plano that keeps the Marauders' postseason hopes alive.

Marcus improves to 7-6 against district competition with the victory and moves into a three-way tie for third place with Carrolton Hebron and Lewisville in the District 6-6A standings with the playoffs quickly approaching.

The Wildcats, meanwhile, were eliminated from postseason contention with the loss that dropped them to 5-8 in district play and sixth place in the 6-6A district standings.

The game got off to an inauspicious start for the Marauders when Plano loaded the bases with no outs to start the top of the first inning. Penelope Hurtado then helped the Wildcats seize an early advantage with a two-run double that scored Jillian Grubenhoff and Taylor Pitts. 

Marcus responded during the bottom half of the frame on Avery Rich's RBI double that drove in LSU commit Tori Edwards, who tripled to lead off the bottom of the inning, and trimmed Plano's lead to 2-1.

Drissel, Marcus' starting pitcher, found her rhythm and quickly recovered following a rocky top of the first in the circle. 

The Marauders' ace struck out five of the next eight batters she faced and forced the Wildcats to strand four runners on base in the first and second innings. Drissel struck out nine while allowing eight hits and four runs in four innings pitched.

Plano scored again during the third inning when Hurtado swatted an RBI single to make it a 3-1 lead. Marcus again responded when Rich earned her second RBI of the game with a hit to left field that scored Bella Valdez on a bobbled throw home.

With a 3-2 score, both teams were waiting for a big play to claim momentum. Plano got it during the top of the fourth with a solo home run by Kyndall Ramby to left-center field, as the Wildcats' lead swelled into a two-run advantage. 

Marcus went down in order and made a change in the circle by bringing in senior Raegan Sucher to pitch heading into the fifth inning.

Despite the Wildcats loading the bases to start the fifth, Sucher was able to navigate Marcus out of the jam. Half an inning later, the Marauders made it a one-score game when Edwards ripped a line-drive solo home run, cutting Plano's lead to 4-3.

After a scoreless sixth and top of the seventh, Marcus came to bat for their final chance. Karli Burgess was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning. Then, after a strikeout Edwards was intentionally walked to put the winning run on base.

After an infield fly, the Marauders were down to their last out. Drissel singled to left field, but the throw came in too quickly to plate any Marcus base runners leaving the bases loaded.

Then, Alejandro came to bat and quickly worked a full count. After fouling off the first full count pitch, she turned on a fastball and hit the ball down the left field line and struck the foul pole with a glancing blow to secure the walk off victory.

Marcus will close out the regular season on the road at Plano East on Saturday afternoon, while Plano will finish its season on Friday night at home against Coppell. 

Flower Mound Marcus (17-12-1, 7-6) will look keep its momentum going and secure District 6-6A's fourth and final playoff spot when the Marauders return to action against the Plano East Panthers (13-14-1, 3-10) to close out the regular season at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 22, in Plano.

Plano (12-19, 5-8), meanwhile, will wrap up its regular-season schedule when the Wildcats face the Coppell Cowgirls (10-19, 2-11) at 7:15 p.m. on Friday, April 21, in Plano.

Check out SBLive's exclusive photo gallery from the game:

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PHOTO GALLERY — FLOWER MOUND MARCUS 7, PLANO 4

All photos by Brian McLean