Game Recap: Softball |  | Nicolle Holcomb

 

WICHITA FALLS, Texas – The Eastern New Mexico softball team took on Midwestern State University for a Lone Star Conference doubleheader on Sunday afternoon. The Greyhounds (1-20, 1-19 LSC) fell 3-2 to the Mustangs (13-25, 6-18 LSC) in the first game but bounced back to a 10-4 victory in the second contest to pick up their first win of the season.

GAME ONE: MSU 3, ENMU 2

The first game in the doubleheader was a defensive battle with neither team getting on the board until midway through the contest.

Midwestern State managed to get the first run across to take a slim 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. Payton Griffin got on base via a walk and then rounded home on a double from Maddy Holder.

The Hounds saw a great chance to score in the top of the sixth when they loaded the bases, but the Mustangs managed to get out of the jam with three straight outs to keep their advantage.

MSU added one more run in the bottom of the sixth to stretch the lead out to 2-0. Marley Eller led off with a double and was sent home on Holder’s second double of the contest.

Eastern came out in the top of the seventh looking to rally and managed to tie the game 2-2. Alanna Larkins started things off with a single through the right side before advancing to second after a walk from Tianna Boone. The Mustangs were then able to get two outs but Aylene Lucero hit a single that saw two runs score on an error.

Midwestern State’s Carson Solis started the bottom of the seventh with a walk. The Mustangs then hit three singles to get Solis home and secure the 3-2 win.

Offensively, the Hounds saw five hits from five different student-athletes. Lucero finished the contest with two RBI.

Maite Bustillos got the start in the circle. She allowed five hits and two runs with one strikeout in 5.1 innings. Tava Boone saw 0.2 innings of work before Brook Leger came in to finish out the game. Leger was credited with the loss and allowed three hits with one strikeout in 0.1 innings.

GAME TWO: ENMU 10, MSU 4

The Greyhounds got the bats going early, taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. Bustillos doubled to the short stop and then advanced to third on a wild pitch. She scored on a ground out by Jokaira Paredes.

Eastern then stretched that lead out to 3-0 in the third inning. Paredes singled to short stop with one out and then rounded home on a Tianna Boone double. Larkins followed up with an RBI single to left field to score Tianna Boone.

Midwestern State responded in the bottom of the frame, tallying four runs on four hits and an error to gain the 4-3 advantage.

In the top of the fourth, Paredes hit a two-RBI single to left field to give the Hounds back the lead, 5-4.

ENMU opened the game up a bit with three runs in the fifth inning. Tianna Boone followed that up with a two-run homer in the top of the sixth to make it a 10-4 game.

The Mustangs loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth with one out, but Leger got out of the inning with two strikeouts to preserve the Eastern lead. The Hounds then held off Midwestern in the final inning to secure their first win of the season.

Tianna Boone led the way offensively as she went 2-for-4 at the plate with three RBI, a double, and a home run. Paredes finished the contest 3-for-5 with three RBI. Overall, Eastern saw a season-high 14 hits from seven different student-athletes.

Jordan Bowman started the game in the circle and allowed six hits and four runs, two of which were earned, while striking out one batter in three innings. Leger finished out the final four innings to earn the win. She allowed just three hits with seven strikeouts.

The Greyhounds return to Portales next weekend as they host Western New Mexico on Friday, April 23 at 3 p.m.