ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Tarleton State Softball split day two of the UNM Invitational on Saturday at the Lobo Softball Field, earning a 7-2 win over UTEP before falling 5-0 to tournament host New Mexico.
With the split, the Texans move to 3-1 on the weekend and 14-6 overall.
Tarleton State 7, UTEP 2
After three scoreless innings on both sides, the Texans struck first in the bottom of the fourth.
Madison Runyan broke the stalemate with a solo home run to left field, giving Tarleton State a 1-0 advantage.
UTEP answered in the top of the fifth. After a pair of singles put runners on, Marissa Burchard delivered a ground-rule double to plate a run and even the score at 1-1.
The Texans responded emphatically, blasting back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the fifth.
Mikayla Wilson singled to start the rally, and Jaelynn Duke worked a walk to put two on. Casey Schultz followed with an RBI single up the middle to give Tarleton State a 2-1 lead. With another walk by Runyan and bases loaded, Isabella Bojkovic launched a grand slam to left center, extending the Texan advantage to 6-1. Katherine Brunner immediately followed with a solo home run to center, capping a six-run inning and pushing the lead to 7-1.
UTEP added one more in the sixth on an RBI double down the left field line, but the Texans closed the door from there.
Taylor McKean earned the win in the circle, tossing five innings and allowing just one run on five hits while striking out two. Shelby Schultz finished the final 1.1 innings to secure the victory.
Tarleton State totaled 10 hits in the game, led by Bojkovic’s four RBI performance.
New Mexico 5, Tarleton State 0
The nightcap remained scoreless through two innings before New Mexico broke through in the third.
After a fielding error allowed the leadoff runner to reach and move into scoring position, Allie Williams singled to score the first run of the game. Later in the inning, Gabrielle Briones added an RBI single to make it 2-0, with both runs unearned.
The Lobos extended their lead in the fourth. A double and a throwing error set the stage for Estrella Rowe, who hit a two-run home run to right field to stretch the lead to 4-0. Later in the inning, Williams drove in another run with an RBI single, giving New Mexico a 5-0 advantage.
Tarleton State threatened early, putting runners in scoring position in both the first and fourth innings, but was unable to capitalize. The Texans finished with seven hits, including a double from Hayden Fox and a pair of hits from Bojkovic, but left 10 runners on base.
Sadie Beck took the loss, allowing four runs (two earned) over three innings. Taylor McKean provided 2.2 scoreless innings of relief to close out the game.
The Texans will return to action Sunday to conclude play at the UNM Invitational.
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