Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton walked off in the first game and slugged its way to a doubleheader sweep in game two of Friday's twin bill against Incarnate Word as the TexAnns.
 
The TexAnns won the first game 2-1 in eight innings and 9-4 in the nightcap to bring themselves to a tie for the No. 5 seed in next week's LSC Championship Tournament with the No. 7-ranked team in the region, Incarnate Word. Both teams are now 13-13 in league play.
   
After engaging in an epic pitching duel against the LSC's Preseason Pitcher of the Year, Randi Fentress took matters into her own hands in the bottom of the eighth with a walk-off base hit to center field to give Tarleton a 2-1 win over UIW in extra innings.
 
“Randi had a great day and I'm so proud of her,” said Tarleton head coach Julie Mata. “(Briana Sanchez) has been a very good pitcher in this league for a long time and Randi matched her pitch-for-pitch tonight and ultimately came out on top. I can't say enough about Randi's game today.
 
“Also we got some clutch hits from our seniors Arianna Rodriguez and McKaylee Pittman to give us a chance in the eighth,” she added.
 
Melody Mayse got to the Cardinal starter as the first batter of the game, coaxing a leadoff walk.
 
After Kelsey Latta moved Mayse to second with a sacrifice bunt and an illegal pitch moved her to third with two outs, Bailee Mauldin dropped a single just beyond the reach of the Cardinal shortstop to put Tarleton up 1-0 after one.
 
In the circle, meanwhile, Fentress was dealing.
 
The TexAnn starter matched Incarnate Word's pitcher zero-for-zero over the next six innings as Tarleton took a 1-0 lead into the top of the seventh.
 
Fentress had runners on second and third with one out before she got a ground ball right at shortstop Arianna Rodriguez, who held the go ahead run at third and got the second out.
 
The next UIW batter slapped a ball to third but it was stopped by a diving McKaylee Pittman, who threw just a bit late to first as the tying run came in to score. Fentress got out of the jam with a fly ball to right field to force extras.
 
Fentress danced out of trouble in the eighth, stranding the bases loaded and giving the TexAnns another chance in the bottom of the eighth.
 
Rodriguez led off the eighth with a single and after an out, Pittman followed suit with a single of her own to put two on with one out.
 
Fentress appeared to end the game on a hit down the line, but a foul call kept the junior at the plate for one more pitch. She answered the call by driving the next pitch into center field to bring home Rodriguez.
 
Tarleton only had four hits on the day, all singles and three coming in the eighth, while Fentress earned the win going the complete game allowing one run on seven hits and three walks.
   
Tarleton scored in all six of its offensive innings in the nightcap of Friday's doubleheader and won game two of the twin bill 9-4 over the Cardinals to earn the doubleheader sweep.
 
“We had some great at bats in the second game,” said Mata. “We were patient and forced them to give us pitches we could handle and when they did, we were aggressive with it. Also, I can't enough about the job Brenna and Bailee did. Those two really battled against a very good team.”
 
Tarleton got on the board first when Rodriguez hit a grounder to short, who ran Latta back to second while Mayse came in to score for a 1-0 TexAnn lead.
 
Incarnate Word answered in the second when a two-run blast put the Cardinals on top for the first time in either game.
 
The TexAnns took the lead back for good in the ensuing half inning when Mayse ripped a two-out double to left field to plate Fentress and Courtney Vroman. The freshman was thrown out at third trying to record her eighth triple of the season.
 
Tarleton added one more in the third on an RBI double by Pittman and two more in the fourth on a throwing error by the catcher that let Eryn Freitas come in from third and a steal of home by Mayse on a double steal.
 
With Tarleton up 6-2, the TexAnns went home run happy over the next two innings as Vroman and Mayse each blasted off for solo shots in the fifth before Rodriguez hit her 40^th career bomb in the sixth to put Tarleton up 9-2.
 
UIW tacked on two in the seventh and stranded the bases loaded.
 
Hennan earned the win pitching all seven innings allowing four runs on 11 hits and three walks.
 
Tarleton mustered 13 hits as a team with Mayse highlighting the night with her first career 4-hit game, going 4-4 en route to her team-leading 17^th multi-hit game of the season.
 
Latta (2-3), Mauldin (2-4) and Vroman (2-3) also had multi-hit games while Rodriguez, Pittman and Fentress had one hit each.
 
With Rodriguez and Pittman getting hits in both games, Rodriguez has now reached base in 14 straight games while Pittman has reached in 13 consecutive.
 
Tarleton will go for the sweep tomorrow afternoon on senior day at 12 p.m. The five TexAnn seniors – Rodriguez, Pittman, Vroman, Shelby Tinklepaugh and Hannah Hancock – will be honored after the game.