Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Staff photo: Joshua Lucero ENMU sophomore Susie Chandler reaches down to touch home plate with one of her three runs scored during the second game of Saturday’s Lone Star Conference softball doubleheader at Zia Field.
link Staff photo: Joshua Lucero
ENMU sophomore Susie Chandler reaches down to touch home plate with one of her three runs scored during the second game of Saturday’s Lone Star Conference softball doubleheader at Zia Field.
STAFF REPORT
Suffice it to say, Eastern New Mexico University’s softball team is glad to see the last of West Texas A&M for the season.
The second-ranked Lady Buffs, who hit 13 homers in a pair of wins on Friday, completed a four-game Lone Star Conference sweep on Saturday with eight more long balls in a 17-2, 21-7 pounding of the Zias at Zia Field.
The Lady Buffs (37-6, 21-3 LSC) outscored the Zias 74-11 in the four games.
WT got all its home runs from seven players, including five from No. 8 hitter Ashley Hardein. The center fielder hit three on Saturday, including two in the second game, and finished the day 5-for-7 with eight RBIs.
Meantime, third baseman Kaisha Dacosin hit four for the series, with one in each of Saturday’s games. All seven players homered at least twice in the series.
The Lady Buffs wasted no time, sending 12 batters to the plate in the first inning of the opener and scoring seven runs. Dacosin followed two singles and a walk with a grand slam, and left fielder Hannah Limler capped it with a two-run shot.
ENMU (16-24, 3-17) got an RBI groundout from Amanda Martinez in the second and a base-loaded walk by catchr Kyra Sirag in the fourth.
In the second game, WT scored five runs on six hits — no homers — in the top of the first before ENMU rallied to 5-4 in the bottom half, highlighted by a two-run double from third baseman Morgan Green.
The Lady Buffs then scored three runs each in the second and third innings before finishing it with a nine-run seventh that included two-run homers by Dacosin and Hardin.
ENMU did pound WT ace Rita Hokianga (16-4) for 11 hits in the nightcap.
Freshman left-hander Aja Secheslingloff (11-16) took the brunt of the beating, throwing a combined 320 pitches in the two games before coming out in the seventh inning of Game 2.
The Zias added runs in the third on a double by Savannah Chavez, in the fifth on a solo homer by Susie Chandler and in the seventh on a single by Simone Laurez.
LINESCORES
Saturday
Lone Star Conference
First game
West Texas A&M 17, ENMU 2
W. Texas A&M 714 14 — 17 14 0
ENMU 010 10 — 2 6 0
Hannah Newcomb, Tori Bayer (4) and Lacey Taylor; Aja Secheslingloff and Aurelia Sandoval. W — Newcomb (9-1). L — Secheslingloff (11-15). DP — West Texas A&M 1. LOB — West Texas A&M 5, Eastern New Mexico 8. 2B — West Texas A&M Allie Smith, Ashley Hardin. Eastern New Mexico: Kyura Sirag. 3B — West Texas A&M: Hardin. HR — West Texas A&M: Kaisha Dacosin (12), Taylor (11), Hardin (10), Hannah Limmer (4). T — 1:45.
Second game
W. Texas A&M 21, ENMU 7
W. Texas A&M 533 010 9 — 21 21 1
ENMU 401 010 1 — 7 11 2
Rita Hokianga and Taylor; Secheslingloff, Vanessa Ramirez (7) and Sirag. W — Hokianga (16-4). L — Secheslingloff (11-16). LOB — West Texas A&M 10, Eastern New Mexico 7. 2B — West Texas A&M: Brittany Gehle, Renee Irwin 2, Smith 2, Andrea Sitter. Eastern New Mexico: Susie Chandler, Morgan Green, Savannah Chavez. HR — West Texas A&M: Erwin (19), Dacosin (13), Hardin 2 (12). Eastern New Mexico: Chandler (3). T — 2:30. A — 78.
