Arkansas third baseman Hannah Gamel battled through a marathon 20-pitch at-bat against Texas in a tense moment with two outs and runners on the corners. Gamel, hitting .377 with 18 homers, fouled off pitch after pitch, mostly off-speed screwballs clocking in around 60 mph. She stayed aggressive, moving up in the box and adjusting her timing, but couldn’t square one up. On pitch 15, confusion broke out when a swing appeared to hit her on the shoulder. Texas argued for a strikeout, claiming the ball hit her, not the bat. The umpires gathered and reviewed the play, but ruled the incident unreviewable, citing rules that only batted ball fair/foul calls can be reviewed—not hit by pitches. The at-bat continued.
After more foul balls that drove the count up to 19, Texas finally changed the approach. Instead of the same inside screwball, they went outside. Gamel hesitated, made weak contact, and the second baseman fielded it cleanly for the third out. Texas even turned a sharp back pick to get the runner at second, ending the frame. Despite the long at-bat, Texas’ pitcher remained unfazed, which is common in softball as pitch counts aren’t as limiting as in baseball. The catcher’s consistent energy behind the plate also stood out, staying locked in for every one of the 20 pitches. No damage done, but a gritty standoff.