TYLER, TEXAS - #6 UT Tyler secured 6-4 and 13-0 wins over St. Edward's on Friday afternoon to kick-off a six-game homestand at Irwin Field.
 
UT Tyler plated six two-out runs in the second inning of game one and then totaled all 13 of their second-game runs in the first three frames to provide the majority of their damage early in both outings. Graduate student Genesis Armendariz struckout six of the eight batters she faced in game one to collect a save and then tossed a four-hit shutout in the five inning run-rule in game two.
 
Junior Sam Schott had multiple hits in both games of the doubleheader, scoring four times, and finished the afternoon 4-for-5 at the plate.
 
UT Tyler moved to 33-7 on the year and 24-5 in Lone Star Conference play with the victories.
 
Game One
 
Six runs with two outs on the board in the second inning provided the difference in UT Tyler's 6-4 game one victory.
 
St. Edward's jumped ahead with a two-run homer in their first trip to the plate and then cut the lead to just two in the sixth, but couldn't overcome the two-out Patriot rally in the second inning. Junior Christin Haygood settled the Hilltopper offense after the fast start, collecting the win and moving to 8-0 on the year after going 4.1 innings in relief of starter Kaylee Davis.

Armendariz came on for Haygood in the top of the sixth and kept the 6-4 advantage for the Patriots in-tact despite the Hilltoppers loading the bases with just one out. Armendariz struckout the first batter she faced with runners on second and third for the first out of the inning, followed suit with a strikeout of the ensuing batter, but a wild pitch on the swinging third strike allowed the runner to advance for the bases loaded opportunity for the Hilltoppers.
 
Armedariz induced a groundout that allowed the Patriots to make the second out at home and then struckout the final at bat of the frame to end the Hilltopper's half of the sixth with just two runs on the board.
 
That two-run rally cut a 6-2 lead for the Patriots that held through five innings of play to 6-4. UT Tyler scored all six of their second-inning runs with two outs on the board.
 
The Patriots led off that second inning with a double from Audrey Escamilla and a hit by pitch of JT Smith. Escamilla was pinch-ran for by freshman Hailey Fannin, who was thrown out on a fielder's choice at third base, while Smith began the scoring in the inning on an RBI infield single from freshman Makayla Garcia.
 
Schott drove in the next run on an RBI single of her to tie the game at 2-2 and then came around to score as part of the go-ahead runs on a costly fielding mistake by St. Edward's. Schott and Garcia both scored after a pair of errors for the Hilltoppers on an infield dribbler that got past the first baseman and then compounded into a throwing error by the second baseman.
 
Graduate student Courtney Plocheck drove in the fifth run of the rally on an infield single, and Escamilla capped off the scoring with her second hit of the frame with an RBI single to make it 6-2.
 
Armendariz struckout all three batters she saw in the seventh and didn't allow a two-out error by the Patriots detour her from a save.
 
Schott and Escamilla both had two hits. Six different Patriots crossed home plate in the victory.
 
Game Two
 
Armedariz got the start in game two and tossed a four-hit shutout that was complimented by 13 runs in the first three innings by UT Tyler.
 
The Patriots notched five runs in the first, two runs in the second and six runs in the third to provide Armendariz with an early sizeable advantage. The Hobbs, N.M. native conceded three singles in the second and a base hit in the third before closing the game out by retiring eight straight to close the books on her strong afternoon in the circle.
 
Armendariz struckout three and didn't walk a single batter.
 
The UT Tyler offense needed just seven hits to put across the 13 runs. A sac bunt from Escamilla put the first run on the board and paved the way for a two-RBI double from JT Smith with the bases loaded to make it 3-0.
 
A foul out from Garcia scored Michelle Arias from third on a sac fly and Smith closed out the scoring on a wild pitch to run the advantage to 5-0.
 
The Patriots made it a 7-0 lead after a Nicole Price chopper to third forced a throwing error by the Hilltoppers and allowed Schott to score all the way from first. Plocheck notched a sac fly on the ensuing at bat for the second run of the inning, scoring Price.
 
Sophomore Taryn Barney opened up a six-run bottom of the third for UT Tyler with a double to left center that scored Michelle Arias. Schott added onto her big day with an RBI single that scored Barney and then scored on a heads-up base running decision after the Hilltoppers botched the throw from the catcher to the pitcher on Mullen's RBI walk that made it 10-0.
 
Escamilla provided the final blow with a two-RBI single that drew the score to it's eventual 13-0 final tally.
 
Schott was one of four Patriots alongside Price, Plocheck and Arias that scored multiple times in the game. Escamilla finished 1-for-3 with three RBI and a run scored, while Schott put together a 2-for-3 outing that featured three runs scored and an RBI.
 
Armendariz moved to 10-5 on the year with the 5.0 innings of complete work.
 
Up Next
 
UT Tyler will take the 2-0 advantage in series into tomorrow's single game scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch.