PORTALES, NEW MEXICO – UT Tyler softball moved to 32-8 on the year and 24-4 in LSC play after sweeping Eastern New Mexico to win their seventh straight game.
 
GAME ONE: UT Tyler 9 | Eastern New Mexico 4
 
The Patriots got some key relief in the circle and tacked on five unanswered runs in the middle frames to take the game one win.
 
UT Tyler started hot, scoring four first inning runs to take an early lead. After loading the bases with a single and two walks, Sydney Linn drove in the first run of the game with an RBI hit by pitch. Two batters later, Megan Lau drove home two with an RBI single to right field, and Kaylee Cavazos capped off the rally with a ground rule double to plate one more run.
 
Eastern New Mexico would answer in the second, scoring four runs of their own and ultimately chasing starter Alli Kimball from the game. The first two came via a two run homer, and then would add their final two on a fielding error to make it 4-4 after two frames. The Patriots would bring on Kearston Gooch, who got the final out of the inning.
 
Gooch would work a scoreless third, working around a single and two walks to post a strikeout, flyout, and foulout. That set up the Patriots in the top of the fourth, and they backed up Gooch with a big two RBI double from Taryn Barney that plated both Dezirae Lopez and Layne Reh.
 
Gooch worked a second straight scoreless half inning in the fourth, getting a groundout, flyout, and strikeout around a pair of singles to keep the Greyhounds off the board.
 
The Patriots responded yet again in the fifth to the effort of Gooch, this time with a big shot from Reh. After Lau drew a walk and Keona Wells reached via a single, Reh hammered the first pitch she saw over the left field wall for a three run blast.
 
That last burst would be the last of the game for the offense, and Gooch would be nothing short of strong down the stretch for the win. She got around a pair of walks in the fifth to get three flyouts, and then added the first 1-2-3 inning of the game in the sixth with two groundouts and a strikeout.
 
In the final frame, Gooch kept up the strong effort, getting a second straight 1-2-3 inning and retiring her eighth straight batter in the process to ice the game and pick up the Patriots win.
 
Gooch picked up her 11^th win of the season after going 5.1 innings in relief. She allowed just three hits and four walks while striking out three and allowing no runs.
 
Layne Reh went 3-for-4 with three RBI and three runs scored in the contest. Dezirae Lopez added two hits, and Taryn Barney and Megan Lau each added two RBI.
 
GAME TWO: UT Tyler 12 | Eastern New Mexico 1
 
The Patriots leaned on another strong pitching performance in game two, but kept the bats hot all game long on their way to a run-rule win.
 
They would strike first in the top of the first inning, with Reh reaching via single and Barney later by a hit-by-pitch. That brought up Sydney Linn, who drilled a full count pitch to center field for a three run blast.
 
Patriots starter Kendall Selitzky kept the Greyhounds at bay for the entirety of her outing, putting up five consecutive zeroes to open the game. She struck out a pair in the first, and then struck out the side in the second inning. In the third, she worked her first 1-2-3 frame, adding yet another strikeout.
 
The Patriots added a run in the fourth as Kaylee Cavazos came all the way around to score on an error, making it 4-0. Selitzky again was flawless in the home half, adding two more strikeouts in a second straight 1-2-3 frame.
 
Lau and Cavazos brought home three runs with RBI singles in the fifth, putting the Patriots on the doorstep of a run-rule. After another flawless inning from Selitzky in the fifth, the Patriots offense plated five runs to break open the game and officially shut the door. Linn drove home the first on a single, and Lau added another via a fielder's choice. An RBI walk from Gracie Cates, another RBI single from Lopez, and a sacrifice fly from Reh made it 12-0.
 
The Greyhounds would score one run on reliever Kaylee Harris who came on to pitch the sixth, but three groundouts would end the frame and any hopes of extending the game.
 
Selitzky in total went five innings while allowing one hit and two walks and posting nine strikeouts for her 10^th win of the season.
 
Sydney Linn, Megan Lau, and Kaylee Cavazos each tallied two hits and combined for eight RBI in the contest. Linn and Barney would each score three runs, and Kaelyn Lerma added two.
 
UT Tyler will now head back to Irwin Field to face off with Texas Woman's in their lone matchup of next week. That doubleheader will take place on April 11^th beginning at 1 p.m.