After one week of Lone Star Conference games, Lubbock Christian leads the standings at 4-0, while five teams started league action 3-1.
LSC teams are playing a single round-robin schedule with a doubleheader (two games) against each league opponent. The LSC Champion will be the team(s) with the best winning percentage in regular-season conference games. The top 10 teams will qualify for the single-elimination conference championship to determine the league’s tournament champion.
In the NCAA Division II South Central Region, LSC teams are 37-18 combined versus Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference competition.
LSC schedule and results available here:
http://www.lonestarconference.org/calendar.aspx?path=softball&&
SOFTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
HITTER
Tyla Lee, Lubbock Christian, SR, Criminal Justice, Utility, Red Deer, Alberta, École Secondaire Notre Dame HS
Lee helped LCU to a 4-0 week, as they swept No.18 Oklahoma Christian and Cameron on the road, as the only LSC team not suffering a loss during the week. In their two wins over OC, they won despite trailing after six innings in each game. Lee led LCU with seven hits on the week, with six against Cameron, as she was 6-for-9 against the Aggies. She had a pair of three-hit games against CU, including a 3-for-5 performance in the second game in which she matched a career high with five RBI. Lee was 4-for-6 with runners in scoring position and 3-for-7 when batting with the bases empty. In two-out at-bats, Lee was 4-for-7, with five two-out RBI produced.
PITCHER
Beth Montes, Texas A&M-Kingsville, SO, Undecided, Pitcher, San Antonio, Texas, MacArthur HS
Montes picked up two victories for the Javelinas last week to stay undefeated in 2022. Her first start, she twirled a four-hit shutout with no walks and six strikeouts against St. Edward's. She followed that up by allowing only one earned run to the St. Mary's in 4.1 innings on Sunday. For the week, Montes' 2-0 record was accompanied by a 0.79 ERA in 11.1 innings to help the Javelinas improve to 19-2 overall and 3-1 in league play.
WEEKLY AWARDS
Hitter
F-8 Paxton Scheurer, Angelo State
F-15 Loren Kelly, Texas A&M-Kingsville
F-22 Tyla Lee, Lubbock Christian
M-1 Kasey Flores, Lubbock Christian
M-8 Tyla Lee, Lubbock Christian (2)
Pitcher
F-8 Emily Otto, Texas A&M-Commerce
F-15 Taylor Franco, Lubbock Christian
F-22 Alyssa LeBlanc, Texas A&M-Commerce
M-1 Catalina Cavazos, St. Mary's
M-8 Beth Montes, Texas A&M-Kingsville
SELECTED NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
Janae Ruiz, Western New Mexico, is continuing to swing the bat well and used her speed hit .714 this weekend. Her on base percentage was .750 as the Mustangs went 1-3 versus Texas Woman's and Midwestern State. She posted two games where she didn't record an out at the plate, going 3-for-3 and 4-for-4. In the final game against MSU, Ruiz scored three three times helping WNMU secure the victory. The slapper is hitting .528 on the year with an on base percentage of .575.
Azalea Martinez, Eastern New Mexico, had a fantastic weekend against nationally ranked opposition this weekend for Eastern New Mexico Softball. Martinez finished the weekend with a .636 BA, .667 OBP, and 1.000 SLG% with seven hits against #23 Texas A&M-Commerce and #1 UT Tyler. Prior to this weekend, #23 TAMUC and #1 UTT held opposing batters to under .240 batting average. First, the Hounds centerfielder finished 2-2 with a walk in the Hounds 8-5 win over #23 Texas A&M-Commerce. Martinez had a double and a two-run home run en route to the Greyhound's first win against the Lions since 2017. The Albuquerque, N.M. native continued their hot hitting on Sunday against #1 UTT, posting four hits in six at-bats including going 3-4 in game one with three singles.
Brooklin Bain, Oklahoma Christian, shined as the Eagles opened the Lone Star Conference portion of their season with doubleheaders against top-30 opponents Lubbock Christian and Angelo State. She was OC's primary catalyst in an 8-7 loss to Lubbock Christian in the second game on Friday, going 4 for 4 with two doubles, a triple, three RBIs and two runs scored. She tripled and scored in the third inning of a 2-0 win over No. 6-ranked Angelo State on Saturday, then went 2 for 4 with two RBIs and two runs scored in a 5-4 loss to the Rambelles in the final game. With OC trailing 4-2 in the bottom of the seventh, she delivered a two-out single to right field that tied the game and forced extra innings. Bain also had a non-softball highlight during the week, as she made the All-Lone Star Conference second-team list in women's basketball. It was the second straight season in which she earned All-LSC basketball honors, and last spring, she was an All-LSC and All-South Central Region pick in softball.
Madison Schaefer, Texas A&M-Commerce, had three RBIs, including the game-winning RBI in game two and four hits in two wins over No. 4 West Texas A&M for the Lions. In total. she batted .524 on the weekend, while collecting 11 hits and six RBIs. She had multi-hit games in all but one game, while scoring two runs against Southeastern Oklahoma State and two runs in a win as well at Eastern New Mexico. She is 26th in the conference with 16 RBIs.
Ashley Turner, Midwestern State, hit .478 with three doubles, a home run and five RBIs over six games last week including doubleheaders against Central Oklahoma, UT Permian Basin and Western New Mexico. The senior from Cache posted two three-hit games going 3-for-4 with two doubles in the second game of Friday's twin bill at UTPB with two doubles and two runs driven in and was 3-for-4 in Sunday's finale at WNMU with a double and a homer and three RBIs. Turner is hitting .467 (14-for-30) with three doubles and three homers during her current eight-game hitting streak. She has reached base in 23 consecutive games dating back to last season.
Ashley Perez, UT Tyler, went 7-for-15 from the plate as #1 UT Tyler went 3-1 on the opening weekend of Lone Star Conference play, including a 6-5 road win over #4 West Texas A&M. Perez hit a pair of homers over the weekend and scored five times between the four games to lead the Patriot offense. She had multi-hit games in three out of the four outings this weekend, and finished the Sunday doubleheader against Eastern New Mexico 5-for-7 with four runs scored. Perez hit .467 for the weekend and now leads the Patriots with a .483 average for the 2022 season.
Jayme Johns, St. Mary's, worked a five-pitch walk in the bottom of the eighth with one out and scored the winning run over #15 Texas A&M Kingsville to help the Rattlers move to 3-1 in conference play and 19-4 on the season. In the five games, Johns drew four walks and led the team with seven hits. She also laid down a sacrifice bunt and was successful in her only stolen base attempt. She tied for the team lead with four RBI and had at least one hit in all five games, stretching her reached base streak to 19 straight. In the LSC opener against TAMIU on Friday, trailing 3-2, Johns scored the go-ahead/winning run in the bottom of the third on a Bari Christian triple, scoring from first base. With the score still 3-2 in the bottom of the sixth, Johns blasted a single down the right field line to drive in two and secure the Rattlers victory, 5-2.
Missy Wise, Texas Woman's, hit her second career home run this weekend to lead the Pioneers to a sweep of Western New Mexico to open LSC action. She also recorded four hits and three doubles in TWU's two losses to UTPB.
Tatum Goff, UT Tyler, dominated both in the circle and at the plate for #1 UT Tyler in the opening weekend of Lone Star Conference play with 15 strikeouts in 9.2 innings pitched and a .750 average at the plate. Goff began her weekend by going 1-for-2 with an RBI and a run scored in the first game on Friday evening against West Texas A&M. Her impact then transitioned to the circle in game number two as she shut down the #4 West Texas offense in 4.2 innings of relief, striking out nine Lady Buffs in the process to help the Patriots secure a 6-5 extra innings win on the road against the defending Division II National Champions. Goff didn't allow West Texas A&M to score a single earned run, and allowed the Patriot offense to work their way back into the game in the top of the seventh inning. The Rusk, Texas native then combined her hitting and pitching efforts in the 11-0 run-rule of Eastern New Mexico in game number two on Sunday afternoon. Goff tossed a complete game shutout of the Greyhounds and allowed just four hits through her 5.0 complete innings while striking out six batters. She went a perfect 2-for-2 at the plate as well, including a solo homer in the top of the fifth to generate her own offense. Goff finished the weekend with a 0.00 ERA and picked up her first win of the season in the circle, and also put together a 3-for-4 performance at the plate with two RBI and two hits.
Malea Rodriguez, Midwestern State, allowed one earned run in 9.2 innings over three appearances last week against UT Permian Basin and Western New Mexico. The junior from Paige, Texas registered seven strikeouts and two walks.
Catalina Cavazos, St. Mary's, shut out her second-straight opponent with a 7-0 win over Texas A&M International and followed that up with a 3-2 win over #15 Texas A&M Kingsville to help the Rattlers begin conference play with a 3-1 record. She stretched her shutout streak to 20-consecutive innings before the Javelinas scored two in the seventh. With a runner on third and the Javelinas threatening to take the lead, Cavazos got a routine groundout to second to end the threat and held TAMUK off the scoreboard in the eighth to give her offense time for the victory. She walked only one in her 15 innings of work and fanned seven to improve to 9-0 on the year.
Alyssa LeBlanc, Texas A&M-Commerce, went 3-0 this past week, pitching to an ERA of 2.14. She collected three strikeouts in a complete game win over Southeastern Oklahoma State on Tuesday, struck out 11 and allowed just one run in six innings on Friday at Eastern New Mexico, and pitched to a win over No. 4 West Texas A&M on Sunday, she went 6.2 innings, allowing one earned run and picking up five strikeouts. She also contributed offensively with four RBIs and a home run. LeBlanc is 11th in the conference with 47 strikeouts and 20th with an ERA of 2.75.