LAS CRUCES, N.M. - The NM State softball team (9-12) will head west on I-10 for the GCU Invitational where they will play three games against Idaho State (5-6) and two games against Southern Utah (4-13). On Friday, NM State will face the Bengals at noon before taking on Southern Utah immediately after. On Saturday, the Aggies will start the day at noon against Southern Utah with a game against Idaho State following immediately after. The Aggies will end the weekend with a game against Idaho State at 10 a.m. on Sunday.

Battling Through a Pandemic
In accordance to state restrictions, the Aggies were unable to practice in its home state until Jan. 20. This past week, Dona Ana County cleared the threshold to allow home events to be played within the county. The Aggies home opener is set for Apr. 2 against Grand Canyon and will be played at the NM State Softball Complex. 

Going Through the Gauntlet
The NM State Aggies faced one of the toughest starts in program history. In the first 13 games, the Aggies faced a nationally-ranked opponent in six of those games. This is the only time in program history that the Aggies will have played six games against nationally-ranked opponents in its first 13 games of the year. In 2018, the Aggies opened up the season with five ranked opponents in its first 12 games. 

Late Inning Magic
The Aggies have played a staggering five extra inning contests so far in 2021 and have won four out of the five with its only loss coming in a 12 inning thriller against South Florida. The Aggies have had two walk-off wins this season when Hailey Tanori drove in two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to defeat South Dakota, and Ramsay Lopez hit a walk-off home run to defeat Toledo on Mar. 7 at The Spring Games. The Aggies are 7-2 in games decided by two runs or less this season.

Aggie Rundown
The Aggies returned its top five hitters from the 2020 season, and they have all shined so far in the 2021 season. 

Matalasi Faapito had one of the best weekends of her career in the batter's box at The Spring Games on Mar. 5-7, as she went 10-for-20 for a .500 average with six RBIs and three home runs. Faapito followed that performance with a 4-for-7 performance against the Bulls of South Florida where she hit two home runs in the doubleheader. Faapito currently leads the team in batting average (.407), RBIs (12), slugging percentage (.831) and on-base percentage (.456). 

Slap hitter Hailey Tanori has been one of the most consistent Aggies in the batter's box, as she has recorded a hit in 12 out of the last 13 games and in 17 out of the team's 21 games this spring. Tanori also leads the teams in steals with six.

Junior Kayla Bowen has been a nice surprise for the Aggies, as she is hitting .229 on the year with three doubles and five RBIs. She smacked her first and only home run of the year against #5 Florida on Mar. 5

The Aggies continue to get its power from redshirt freshman Ramsay Lopez. Lopez has hit five home runs on the year and has knocked in 10 RBIs.

Redshirt senior Nikki Butler usually finds her way on base, but it may not be in the most conventional way. Butler is well on her way to break her own single-season hit-by-pitch record. Butler set the record in 2018, as she was hit 18 times, and so far in 2021.

In the circle, the Aggies have begun to settle in, as they have allowed just 12 earned runs in its last eight games. Faapito leads the way with a 3.40 ERA. In the second game against South Florida, Faapito threw 7.2 innings without allowing an earned run. Felicia De La Torre has also begun to hit her stride, as she posts a 4.59 ERA this season while leading the team in strikeouts with 42.

Scouting the Bengals
Idaho State comes into the GCU Invitational 5-6 after splitting a doubleheader with Utah Valley last Sunday. The Bobcats have beaten Utah Valley three times and have also picked up two wins against Nevada. The Bobcats' offense has had a solid amount of success so far this season, as they are hitting .298 as a team. Leading the way is Isabel Cargill with her .423 average. Cargill has driven in eight runs on 11 hits with one home run. 

In the circle, Mailee Newman leads the Bobcats with a 3.15 ERA. She has struck out 12 batters and given up just 12 earned runs.

Scouting the Thunderbirds
Southern Utah comes into the weekend with a 4-13 record but have played four games against top-five opponents in Washington and Arizona. In its last time out, the Thunderbirds dropped two games to Dixie State by scores of 11-9 and 8-7. The Thunderbirds are led by Josey White who is hitting a staggering .473 through 17 games. She has hit eight home runs and knocked in 28 RBIs. In the circle, Tyler Denhart has started 10 games and has posted a 9.76 ERA

Last Time Out
The Aggies fell in two tight battles with South Florida last Wednesday. The Aggies lost both games by a score of 4-3 with the second game going 12 innings. 

Up Next
The Aggies will make a trip to the Pacific Northwest, as they will face Portland State in a doubleheader on Tuesday Mar. 23 before beginning WAC Play on Mar. 26-27 with three games against Seattle U. 

For updates throughout the season, follow the Aggies on Twitter (@NMStateSoftball), Instagram (@nmstatesoftball) and Facebook (NM State Softball).