DENTON, Texas (April 6, 2024) - In front of a special crowd, the Texas Woman's softball team took the victory of the third and last game of the conference series against St. Mary's on Saturday afternoon at Dianne Baker field during Alumni weekend.
WU (17-24, 15-15) recorded an important win against STMU (24-18, 19-11) that showcased the Pioneers offensive and defensive skills.
The Pioneers went out there for game three ready to take it home from the start of the games. TWU got on the board in the bottom of the first inning after shutting the Rattlers down in the top of the first.
Ciana Rodriguez reached on a fielder's choice on first turn at bat and stole second base while Alyssa LeBlanc was in the batting circle and advanced to third on a throwing error by the catcher. After striking out swinging, LeBlanc never took her eyes off the ball and reached first base on a passed ball showing pressure and resilience while Rodriguez made the run to home base and scored the first run for the Pioneers.
TWU added a second run and extended the lead to 2-0 over STMU in the bottom of the third after a scoreless second inning. Lauryn Davies opened the batting turn for TWU walking to first base and showed her speed while stealing second and first bases. LeBlanc walked in her second turn at bat after a wild pitch from the Rattlers' pitcher that Davies took advantage of and made the successful run to home base.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, a single up the middle from Hernandez collected two RBIs, sent Davies and Makana Morton to home base and put the Pioneers 4-0.
A very exciting and full of action fifth inning brought two runs for the Rattlers and three for the Pioneers. STMU got on the scoreboard with a double to center field that cut TWU's lead to 4-2. However, the Pioneers, who were hungry for the win, responded quickly and added three runs to make the score 7-2 after the fifth inning.
After Rodriguez walked and LeBlanc walked and hit a double down the left line respectively, the Pioneer's designated player, Elizabeth Smith, homered to center field and collected a triple RBI for TWU.
STMU collected a final run in the top of the seventh inning but the Pioneers demonstrated superior defensive skills, and the Rattlers fell short.
LeBlanc (9-10) pitched all seven innings for TWU and recorded the highest number of pitches in a game this season with 148 throws facing 28 at bats and only allowing one double in the entire game. After today's game, LeBlanc is the top pitcher in the LSC in innings pitched with a total of 124.2. The senior now leads the conference standing on strikeouts and strikeouts looking with 153 and 55.
TWU maintained the ninth spot in the Lone Star Conference standings, however, the Pioneers are ranked fifth and sixth in fielding and pitching respectively among all 15 teams of the conference.
The Pioneers have a quick turn around for the next conference series as the games against their next rival, Eastern New Mexico, have been rescheduled to tomorrow and Monday, April 7 and 8 due to weather concerns. The double header is set to be played tomorrow at 2 pm and 4 pm. The lone game of the series will be played on Monday, April 8 at 10:30 am. All games will be played in Denton, Texas at Dianne Baker Field.
-PIONEERS-
