- Box Score: Game 1

- Box Score: Game 2

STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton (16-7, 2-0) used strong pitching performances and a second-game power surge to sweep No. 2 West Texas A&M (11-5, 0-2) in the conference opener in Stephenville Friday night.
 
“You just can't say enough about the way Sam and Randi pitched,” said Tarleton head coach Julie Mata, who was honored before the game for earning her 450^th career win last weekend. “They really battled, the hitting was great, and we made a few mistakes but I really can't say enough about these girls. I could go down the lineup and say something about every one of them.”
   
Having got the best of Tarleton's Samantha Swanda for a 3-run home run in the third inning, West Texas A&M's Meghan Brown stood in as the go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh with two-away against the Tarleton senior pitcher.
 
Swanda avenged her only rough batter of the game by getting the best of Brown with the game on the line – striking out the Lady Buff catcher looking to give Tarleton a 4-3 victory – and gave a celebratory fist pump before being swarmed by her teammates in the pitcher's circle.
 
West Texas got to Swanda in the first by loading the bases with one away, but as would be the case for the rest of the night, the senior right-hander battled out of a jam with a pair of strikeouts to end the threat.
 
Tarleton struggled through the first four innings to get anything off the WT starter, Marcie Womack.
 
Kelsey Latta stepped in the top of the fifth with Tarleton trailing 3-0 and ripped the first hard hit of the game back up the middle.
 
After a fielder's choice, pinch hitter Tanner Pipkin and Alex Orf reached on a single and a walk to load the bases for Tarleton with one away.
 
Arianna Rodriguez hit a roller to the shortstop, who hesitated to make a decision on throwing to first or home and Rodriguez beat out the RBI infield single to get Tarleton on the board.

After an RBI single by Welborn, Swanda gave Tarleton the lead with a 2-RBI single to the right center gap.
 
WT loaded bases on three walks in the sixth but didn't come close again as Swanda ended the WT threat again.
 
The senior pitcher from Apache pitched her 12^th complete game of the season allowing five hits and two earned runs while striking out nine.
 
Rodriguez recorded the only multi-hit game for Tarleton while seven other TexAnns had one hit each.
   
Tarleton powered its way to a doubleheader sweep of West Texas A&M 8-1 in the second game of Friday's LSC opener Friday.
 
The second game started just as rough for Tarleton as the opener.
 
Randi Fentress struggled to find the zone in the top of the first and eventually loaded the bases with three walks. The sophomore pitcher managed back-to-back strikeouts to tight rope out of danger.
 
WT did manage to strike first in the third inning when a mental mistake on a run-down play allowed a run to score from third, but the TexAnns responded with a four-run bottom half.
 
Amber Sotelo led off the inning with a base hit to right field and Orf tried to bunt her over, but an error by WT allowed Sotelo to reach third and Orf to reach second, setting up Rodriguez.
 
The junior shortstop homered to straightaway center, giving the TexAnns a 3-1 lead. Bailee Mauldin followed suit with an opposite field solo blast to make it 4-1.
 
After a scoreless fourth, Tarleton poured on a pair in each of its final two frames.
 
With two away, Swanda drove a pitch over the center field wall for her sixth home run of the season – staying tied with Rodriguez for the team lead. Her bomb plated Katie Welborn who laced a shot down the left field line.
 
The TexAnns took advantage of a dropped pop fly in the sixth as Sotelo and Marcie Rodriguez flew around the bases for the final two runs.
 
Fentress shut down the Lady Buffs in the seventh to earn the complete game win. She allowed just two hits and one run – not earned – while striking out nine but also walked a season-high nine batters.
 
Rodriguez continued her torrid season at the plate going 2-4 with three RBIs. Sotelo also had a multi-hit game going 2-2.
 
Tarleton will go for the sweep of No. 2 West Texas at 1 p.m. in Stephenville Saturday afternoon.
 
A live broadcast can be heard on KWBY 98.5 and 107.9 FM in Stephenville.