KINGSVILLE – Tarleton pounded out 15 hits, including a 4-4 effort from Karli Herron, to handle Texas A&M-Kingsville 8-3 in the series opener at Vernie and Blanche Hubert Field Friday night. It is Tarleton's 21^st win of the season.
 
The hitting started right out of the gate as Georgia Capell got the game started with a leadoff double and then came around to score the game's first run on an RBI single from Tanna Huie with two outs. Tarleton kept the scoring coming with two runs in each of the next two innings, with an RBI sacrifice fly from Capell and an RBI single from Nyka Wood in the second and a two-RBI single from Maddie Quintanar in the third for a 5-0 Tarleton lead.
 
Kingsville pushed back with one run each in the third, fifth, and sixth, but Capell drove in Quintanar with an RBI double in the fifth and then Meghann Wrinkle put the game out of reach in the seventh with a two-RBI single to push the lead out to 8-3.
 
Herron led the way with her first career four-hit game, going 4-4 with two runs scored, while Capell added a three-hit game in the leadoff spot. Capell was 3-3 with two RBI and a run scored. Wrinkle, Quintanar, and Huie also boasted multi-hit games with two each while Wood and Elizabeth Svienty had one hit each to round out the offense.
 
While the offense was working, Jordan Withrow improved to 12-4 in the pitching circle with her 12^th complete game of the season. The sophomore right-hander tossed seven innings, allowing three runs on 10 hits and a walk while striking out three.
 
Tarleton and Kingsville will return to action tomorrow with a 1 p.m. doubleheader.