DENTON, Texas (March 19, 2024) - Despite dropping the first game to Midwestern State, the Texas Woman's softball team came back to take the conference series, winning the last two games 5-4 and 3-1 on Sunday and Monday afternoon, March 17-18.

TWU (16-17, 14-10) faced the Mustangs at home and took the victory on two of the three games played. MSU (5-25, 3-18) won the opener in eight innings. 

After seven full innings scoreless in Denton, Texas for the first game of the doubleheader, the Mustangs scored their first two runs in the top of the eighth inning from a two-run home run from the freshman Paige Gallegos. 

The Pioneers had a quick response with an unearned run from Hawwa Townsend. Townsend hit a single to third base and advanced to second after Piper Morton was out from first to second base. Vivica Hernandez reached on a throwing error by the shortstop allowing Townsend to score for the Pioneers. 

Alyssa LeBlanc (8-8) pitched all eight innings for the Pioneers and recorded a total of 135 pitches. LeBlanc faced 27 at bats and struck out ten of them. 

Jaycie Hall (5-4) took the mound for the second game and had 136 pitches in seven innings, a season high for her.

The Mustangs carried the momentum of the first game into the second one and started the first inning taking 4-0 lead over the Pioneers. Both teams struggled to make anything happen for four straight innings until the Pioneers reacted in the bottom of the fifth. 

Hernandez and Piper, who were in scoring position for the Pioneers in second and third base, made it to home plate on a double to right center from Lauryn Davies who collected her first two RBIs this season. 

Davies advanced to this in a wild pitch when Ciana Rodriguez was at bat, to then steal home base and add the third run for TWU. 

With the bases loaded for the Pioneers still in the bottom of the fifth, Delaney Boley reached first on a throwing error by the pitcher giving LeBlanc and Rodriguez the chance to score the final two runs of the game. The 5-4 score held until the seventh and the Pioneers took game two. 

LeBlanc returned to the mound for the lone game of the series on Monday, March 18. 

The third game of the series was not a very eventful one as only three four scores were scored the entire game. The Pioneers and the Mustangs recorded three hits each in seven innings. Callie Bailey, Morton and Davies added to the Pioneers' hits column. 

MSU continued with the pattern from the day before and got on the board quickly in the first inning. The Mustangs held the lead until the bottom of the fifth inning when the Pioneer scored the three runs that would give them the victory. 

Davies, who had significantly contributed to the 5-4 win the game before, collected another two RBIs in game three of the series. 

Madison Altman who came in to pinch run for Boley in first base, and Morton who hit a single to third base were in second and third base when Davies hit her first home run of the season with the Pioneers. 

TWU held the 3-1 lead and took the third game and the series. 

LeBlanc pitched all seven innings of game three and faced 23 at bats and pitched a total of 123 balls only allowing three hits and one run. LeBlanc struck out more than half of the Mustangs at bat she faced (13). 

The Pioneers, who currently ranked ninth in the Lone Star Conference standings, will be back in action tomorrow Wednesday, March 20 for a non-conference doubleheader against Southeastern Oklahoma on the road in Durant, Oklahoma. The doubleheader is set to be played at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.

-PIONEERS-