TYLER, Texas -- Big innings propelled No. 3-ranked UT Tyler to a 4-2, 9-1 doubleheader sweep over Texas Woman's University Sunday afternoon, boosting the Patriots to a 4-0 start in conference play in the program's first season of Lone Star Conference membership.
The Patriots improved to 16-0 overall this season with the sweep, making UT Tyler one of just three remaining unbeaten Division II softball programs this season (Rollins and Charleston are the others).
Payton Foster notched her third win of the week in the 4-2 win in the opener, and Sarah Gartman dealt five strong innings as the Patriots finished off the mercy-rule win in five innings with a 9-1 win in the nightcap.
UT Tyler scored all four of its runs in Game 1 in the opening frame, and the Patriots rallied from a 1-0 deficit with three runs in the third inning of Game 2 before finishing off the sweep with a five-run fifth.
How It Happened (Game 1): Mak Dominguez provided the big swing that resulted in three runs of damage, as her one-out home run to left-center followed an Ashley Perez RBI single to give the Patriots a 4-0 lead in the opener.
Payton Foster retired 10 straight batters after gaining a four-run cushion, and Texas Woman's did not score until the sixth inning, when Paige Tamayo hit a two-out solo home run to cut the lead to 4-1. In the seventh, Taylor Goulet drew a leadoff walk from Foster, bringing Miranda Leal out of the bullpen to retire three consecutive hitters for her third save of the season.
Ashley Perez went 2-for-3 in the contest, and the Dominguez home run was her first of the season. TWU's offense was led by Tamayo, who had two of the Pioneers' four hits in the contest. Leal's third save of the season extended her program career saves record to 15.
How It Happened (Game 2): Texas Woman's University registered the first run of the second game, taking a 1-0 lead on Tyler Green's two-out RBI double in the second inning. It didn't take long for UT Tyler to answer, as Mak Dominguez produced a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the third inning to spark a three-run frame. A fielding error allowed Dominguez to score from first base, and Ashley Perez added a two-out RBI single to complete the three-run inning.
The Patriots extended the lead to 4-1 in the fourth inning on Chaney Tart's RBI single to score Tristin Anders, who hit a one-out triple. An inning later, the floodgates opened, as the first four Patriots to hit in the bottom of the fifth recorded hits. Ashley Perez (RBI double) and Kylie Brown (RBI triple) produced run-scoring extra-base hits, and Amanda Marek added an RBI single to push the lead to 7-1 with no outs. Shea Smith's one-out RBI double scored Marek to make it 8-1, and Haleigh Swinney knocked a double down the left-field line to score Anders and end the game in five innings.
Sarah Gartman retired the final seven batters she faced, and she picked up her second win of the year with a five-inning complete-game effort. Gartman surrendered one run on three hits and struck out five. Kylie Brown went 3-for-3 to lead the offense, and Ashley Perez and Tristin Anders added two hits each.
Inside The Box Score: By answering a 1-0 deficit with nine consecutive runs for the mercy-rule win, UT Tyler has come from behind to win 11 times this season… Kylie Brown batted .600 (9-for-15) with 5 extra-base hits (2 doubles, 2 triples, 1 home run) as the Patriots swept three doubleheaders last week… Ashley Perez batted .444 (8-for-18) on the week with 2 doubles, 2 home runs, and 7 RBIs, and Payton Foster went 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA, recording 14 strikeouts in 18 innings last week.
What's Next: UT Tyler visits Tarleton State (March 6) and Midwestern State (March 8) for its first road games in Lone Star Conference play.
Quotable (head coach Mike Reed): "There's a lot we didn't know before the season started, and everything we did was in preparation for the start of Lone Star Conference play. To get into the routine of this conference, and to play our first four games, I thought we played well and saw that our team grew in some areas we needed to. To get four wins in a weekend in this conference is something to be proud of."
"We talked about staying sharp after Friday's sweep; we didn't want to let Texas A&M-Commerce impact how we played on Sunday. We exhausted a lot of energy on Friday, so that was definitely something we were concerned about. What we tried to impress on our team is that this is an unforgiving league; you have to show up and play every time. Our pitching did a great job keeping them in check until our offense could get going."
"I'm happy for Kylie, because she had such a good fall for us but had a little bit of a slow start in the spring. She's made some changes and small adjustments in her swing, and I'm excited that she could experience some success with her willingness to make those adjustments. She's a big part of our team, and getting her going was a big part of our success this season. Payton has been a bright spot for us and she's really grown a lot from last year. The way she's throwing the ball right now is going to be key for us this week."
