STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Sunday wrapped up the first of three home tournaments this season for the Texans, a program record, that saw the Purple and White take the 4-1 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff to move to 4-1 overall.
After pitching just 0.2 IP in the Texans 2-1 win over Bucknell Friday night,
Kynlee Marquez heard her named called to start in the circle for the first time this season. Her first start of the season is just what she wished for, a win. In the top of the first, Marquez struck out the first batter she faced.
The first inning and a half were quiet for both teams before the Texans started the scoring and never looked back. In the bottom of the second, with
Kalyn Hill on,
Kiana Gibson hit a sac fly to right field driving Hill in to make it 1-0 Tarleton State.
The Golden Lions went three up, three down in the top of the third before the Purple and White tacked on more runs in the bottom half of the frame.
In the bottom of the third, freshman
Casey Schultz singled to right field scoring
Alyssa Budisalovich and moving
Austin Germain to third making it 2-0 Texans. Germain then made it 3-0 as she scored on a wild pitch.
In the next frame, the Golden Lions scored their lone run of the contest as the catcher, Angelina Rivas hit a solo shot just over the right center wall to make it a two run game, 3-1.
The bottom of the fifth saw Budisalovich race around the bases to secure her first triple as a Texan. With the former Temple College star on third, Germain hit a sac fly to left center as Budisalovich scored the Texans fourth and final run making it 4-1.
The final frames went scoreless as
Alexa Rehmeier shut things down for Arkansas-Pine Bluff and earned her first save as Marquez was credited with her first win of 2025.
Marquez (W, 1-0) tossed 4.1 IP giving up just one run on four hits, struck out seven and walked just one. Her seven strikeouts tie two other Texans in senior
Hannah Blincoe and freshman
Shelby Schultz for most strikeouts in a single game this season. Rehmeier went the final 2.2 IP as she allowed just two hits while walking one and striking out five for a total of 12 strikeouts between the two seniors on the day.
Kayla Adams (L, 0-2) went the distance for the Golden Lions as she gave up four runs on seven hits while walking and striking out a pair of Texans. She also had one wild pitch that resulted in a run for Tarleton State.
The Texans will have three days off before returning to action, this time for the fourth annual Whataburger Invitational. The Invitational is set to get underway on Thursday and will wrap up Sunday afternoon. The four-day tournament will feature five different teams including Tarleton State. The other four teams are the Akron Zips, Austin Peay Governors, Houston Christian Huskies and the South Dakota State Jackrabbits.
Tournament passes for the Whataburger Invitational are on sale now and are priced at $40 each for reserved seating, and $30 each for general admission seating. Each pass grants entry to every game of the designated tournament. There are single-day passes available for each tournament as well, priced at $30 per day for reserved seating and $20 per day for general admission.
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