STEPHENVILLE – The Tarleton TexAnn softball team completed a three-game sweep of Eastern New Mexico in the Lone Star Conference South Division series this weekend with a 5-4 victory on Saturday, April 3 in Stephenville.
Tarleton's 3Julie Norris3 provided the winning hit with the TexAnns trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the fifth when the senior hit a three-run homer over the left field fence to lift Tarleton to a 5-3 advantage. Though the Zias scored a run in the top of the sixth, the TexAnns held onto the victory to improve to 3-3 in South Division play. Tarleton is also 18-17 overall this season with the win.
“Julie came up really big for us,” said Tarleton head coach Julie Mata. “She has been having quality at-bats, and this was one of her bests. Another key today was our bunting. We really bunted the ball well, and it made a big difference in today's game.”
After Tarleton's starting pitcher, Brandie Simmons closed out the first inning in just six pitches, the Zias scored two runs on an error and two hits in the top of the second inning to take the early 2-0 lead.
Neither team scored again until the top of the fifth when the Zias had a run on two hits and an error to increase their lead to three.
Back-to-back-to-back singles by the TexAnns' Amy Gabbert, Tami Sutton and Meagan Eldridge loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the fifth inning. A pop-up by Rebecca Wessels was followed by a two-run single by Victoria Kelly. With Tarleton trailing 3-2, Norris hit a three-run bomb over the left field fence to put the TexAnns on top, 5-3.
ENMU added a run to its total on two hits and two errors in the top of the sixth to cut the lead to one, 5-4.
Simmons then threw eight pitches in the top of the seventh and retired three-of-four batters to record the win. She got the complete game win after allowing four runs (two earned0 on nine hits. She walked and struck out two batters each.
“Brandie did an awesome job for us today against a very good hitting team,” Mata said.
Tarleton will return to action at West Texas A&M for a three-game South Division series in Canyon on April 9-10.
