Game Hounds run-ruled twice at No. 2 WT

Staff report

CANYON, Texas — Eastern New Mexico University’s softball team gave it the old college try this weekend. The Greyhounds were simply overmatched by second-ranked rival West Texas A&M.

WT clinched its third consecutive outright Lone Star Conference title with a 10-2, 8-0 sweep over the Hounds, improving to 44-2 (26-2 LSC).

Sophomore center fielder Ashley Hardin and freshman right fielder Brittany Cruz homered in each game for the Lady Buffs, who will host the LSC tourney April 29-30. All four games were decided by eight runs and ended on the eight-run rule, two of them going six innings.

Cruz hit her 16th homer of the season in the fourth inning of Game 2, a three-run shot that made it 6-0. With two outs in the fifth, WT’s Alyssa Montoya drew a walk off ENMU junior Erikka Burke (1-2) and Cruz followed with her ninth shot of the season — and third of the series — to end it.

WT finished with just four hits, but stranded only one baserunner in the contest.

ENMU took its second lead of the series in the opener, scoring twice in the top of the first off Kilee Halbert (18-1) when Burke was hit by a pitch with two outs. Junior shortstop Susannah Chandler followed with an RBI double to center and scored when senior third baseman Morgan Green hit a single to center field.

Halbert retired the next six hitters and 13 of the final 15, allowing only a walk to Burke in the third and a double by Katie Ripple in the fifth.

WT didn’t strike until the third, when Cruz hit a leadoff homer off Ripple (0-1). With one out Kourtney Coveney tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly by catcher Lacey Taylor.

Sophomore designated player Allie Smith led off the fourth with a home run, her seventh of the season, and the Lady Buffs added two more in the inning before senior Andrea Sitter’s three-run homer keyed a four-run fifth. WT ended it on a one-out RBI double by Taylor in the sixth.

Sitter led a 10-hit attack, going 3-for-3, while Coveney added 2-for-4. Bayer allowed five hits with no walks and three strikeouts, with Chandler and Green each going 2-for-2 for the Hounds and both finishing 3-for-5 for the day.

ENMU has a non-conference twin bill at noon (MDT) on Tuesday at Oklahoma Panhandle State.