PORTALES, N.M. – West Texas A&M scored two runs in the seventh inning to break a 4-4 tie to take game one of the three-game series with Eastern New Mexico, 6-4.
The Greyhounds got off to a promising start with a 1-0 lead in the first inning after
Mikenzey Patterson reached third base. A base hit to right field by
Alondra Vasquez gave ENMU the early advantage.
Early on in the game, the story was seeing runners get on base, but the lone run kept the game at 1-0 until the top of the third.
WT broke the deficit and gave themselves a 4-1 lead after a three-run homer from Megan Guericke. The gusty wind blowing toward the fence allowed the ball to float over the wall in deep center to give the Buffs the upper hand.
The visitors made quick work out of the bottom of the third after overtaking the contest and moved into the fourth and stranded a runner after
Marissa Rodriguez came in relief for
Brook Leger.
West Texas A&M sat down the seventh and eighth straight batters to begin the bottom half of the fourth, but that is where ENMU began a rally to tie the game with two outs.
The push began with a single from
Valeria Contreras and continued as
Edyn Lopez came in to pinch hit.
"We practice timely hitting," said Lopez when asked about the fourth inning after the game. "I wait for my pitch and I know especially in a 3-2 count that she is going to pitch at me pretty close."
Well, on a 2-2 count, Lopez blooped a ball over the head's of the left side infield and it took a peculiar hop and went past the left fielder. The moment allowed Contreras enough time to score and trim the deficit to 4-2.
The next batter,
Mikenzey Patterson, also hit a ball over the left side infield and managed to drive in Lopez to score. On the ensuing pitch,
Ashley Nickerson smashed a ball to deep right center and it ended up just a foot shy from going over the fence. Instead, the Greyhounds tied the game at 4-4.
The rally continued with a
Mackenzie Shaw single, but the score remained tied going into the fifth as the Buffs got the final out of the frame.
In the bottom half of the fifth, ENMU got two runners on base and were halted from scoring.
Rodriguez continued to pitch well throughout the afternoon as the first seven batters she faced did not reach base.
After coming into pinch run in the sixth,
Chanler Groves made it 60 feet away from being the potential game winning run, but WT was able to escape away from any ENMU threat.
The Buffs took the game in their own hands and scored two in the seventh to earn a 6-4 lead.
Despite getting a runner on in the bottom half of the seventh to send the potential game-tying runner at the plate, ENMU came up empty handed and fell to West Texas A&M in game one.
"It goes back to executing in those big moments," said head coach
Amanda Fefel after the game. "We need to put the ball in play."
The Greyhounds will get two more shots at WT as they host a doubleheader at Greyhound Softball Field Wednesday afternoon beginning at 12 p.m.
ENMU women's soccer is still accepting donations to their canned food drive. All goods will be given to the ENMU student pantry.
