Game 34
NM State (17-16, 6-6 WAC) at UTEP (10-22, 2-10 CUSA)
Tuesday, April11 | 6 p.m. MDT (DH) | Helen of Troy Softball Complex
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First Pitch

NM State softball returns to the Sun City this Tuesday to take on I-10 rival UTEP for the third and final time this season. The Aggies and the Miners last squared off in Las Cruces for the NM State Round Robin where the Aggies took a pair of games over their neighbors to the south.

NM State is coming off it's second straight series win to Sam Houston this past weekend where the Aggies amassed 23 runs on 29 hits, including eight home runs over the three-game stretch.

UTEP has had a rough season thus far, going 10-22 overall, 2-10 in conference play (CUSA), and is in the midst of a eight game losing streak adding to a brutal 2-17 stretch over the last month.

Lunar Launches

33 games into her freshman campaign at NM State, Kendal Lunar is making quite the impact for the Aggie offense.

The Alamogordo, N.M., native ranks 20th among all Division I hitters and is third in the WAC with 12 total doubles on the season. Lunar also ranks 20th in the nation in doubles per game (0.36).
 

Bowen's Box

Kayla Bowen has been outright dominating in the batter's box over the last few weeks. The fifth year Aggie has hit safely in 13 of her last 14 games and is riding a six-game hit streak over the last two weeks.\

After being named the WAC Hitter of the Week on April 3rd for her 5-8 weekend at the plate against Grand Canyon - which included three RBI's, a double and a pair of home runs to go with a Saturday walk-off – Bowen stayed hot against Sam Houston going 6-9 with three home runs, eight RBIs and five runs scored.

Bowen currently leads the team in batting average (.380), slugging percentage (.750), on-base percentage (.436), hits (38), runs scored (28) and total bases (75).
 

Power at the Plate

Once again, the Aggie offense is one of the best at hitting the long ball. Thus far, the Aggies have combined to hit 52 home runs to average 1.57 per game, ranking sixth in the nation and first in the WAC.

The Aggies have hit a home run in 26 of their 33 games this season, going 17-9 in games where they do hit a home run, and 0-7 in games where they don't.

Dix Dealing in the Circle

Impact transfer Emily Dix continues to embark on an impressive first season with the Aggies, picking up her third save of the season in the win over UTEP on March 5.

Her three saves on the year rank 25th in the nation and first in the WAC, while also totaling more saves than the Aggies as a team during the entire 2022 season.
 

Run Production

It's pretty simple; when the Aggies score runs, they win games. After their series with Sam Houston, NM State sits at a perfect 13-0 in games that it tallies at least six runs.

On the other hand, NM State has yet to win this season when scoring two or fewer runs - posting an 0-10 record in games of this nature.
 

Aggie Accolades

Graduate student Kayla Bowen was named to the Preseason All-WAC team as the lone representative for the Aggies. Last season, Bowen earned Second Team All-WAC honors after hitting .369 with 11 home runs and 41 RBI. She paced the team in hits (59), doubles (13), and total bases (105).

Most recently, Bowen was named as the WAC Hitter of the week on April 3rd following her big series against Grand Canyon where she went 5-8 with three RBIs, a double and two home runs, including the game winning homerun in game three of the series.
 

Covering the Bases

The Aggies return a strong core of players at the batter's box and in the circle, led by 2022 WAC 2nd Team selections Kayla Bowen and Jillian Taylor. Taylor was also named to the 2022 WAC All-Defensive Team for her efforts with the glove. On the year, Bowen hit .369 with 11 home runs, 13 doubles and 41 RBI. Taylor led the team in batting average (.376) while collecting 47 hits, seven home runs, and nine doubles; she was also solid with the leather, recording 82 putouts with five assists, along with turning a pair of double plays.

NM State's infield looks to provide a productive season on both sides of the field, with a pair of starters coming back for another season and an impact transfer from within the conference. Jayleen Burton is coming off a sophomore season where she produced 17 hits and a trio of RBI while providing strong defense from the shortstop position. Paige Knight transferred in from the prestigious Oklahoma program ahead of the 2022 season, and made an immediate impact as an Aggie, batting .284 and launching seven home runs with 25 RBI.

Coming in from UT Arlington, junior Jessica Carreon is looking to be a spark plug for the Crimson & White offense. Last season as a Maverick, Carreon started every game, recording 17 runs scored, seven multi-hit games, led the team in walks drawn (21), and swiped nine bases.

In the outfield, Gabby Aragon looks to build on a productive season that saw the now junior from Carlsbad make 31 appearances for the Aggies, collecting nine RBI and five extra-base hits while providing 26 putouts and a pair of assists.

Laurali Patane and Jordin King return for the 2023 season after accounting for 72% of innings pitched, 69% of total strikeouts and 85% of the wins at NM State to lead a staff that includes junior college transfers Ana Rodriguez, Emily Dix, and Aydenne Brown.

Behind the plate, sophomore Hannah Lindsay looks to build upon a strong freshman campaign, which saw her record the third-highest batting average on the team (.341) while crushing eight home runs and totaling 21 RBI.
 

Legend in the Dugout

Kathy Rodolph has had a remarkable career as head coach at NM State. Entering her 20th season at the helm, Rodolph is the winningest coach in NM State history with a 574-496 record.

She's led the team to four WAC Tournament Championships and six WAC Regular Season Championships, the most recent coming in the 2021 season when the Aggies went 14-4 in conference play.

She is also a five-time WAC Coach of the Year. She has helped the Aggies capture eight WAC player of the year awards and a pair of WAC Freshman player of the year awards. Additionally, Rodolph has helped 17 players earn NFCA All-Region Team Honors.
 

Scouting the Miners

UTEP is in the middle of a rough 2-17 stretch over the last month of the season, putting them at 10-22 overall and 2-10 in conference – the worst record in CUSA this season.

The team is led in hitting by Ellie Grill who's slashing an impressive batting line of .392/.536/.512 with 38 hits, 11 doubles and 16 RBIs in 32 games.

Zaylie Calderon is the team leader in ERA at 4.39 with a 4-5 record while dealing 68 strikeouts to opposing batters. 
 

History vs. Sam Houston

NM State is 37-8 all-time against the Miners, including a 11-1 record over the last ten matchups. The Aggies were able to take a pair of games against UTEP earlier in the season when they met up at the NM State invite. The Aggies routed the Miners 12-3 (5 inn.) in game one of the season series - using home runs from Jillian Tayor, Riley Carley, Kayla Bowen and Hannah Lindsay. Game two was a closer contest, but still saw the Aggies walk away with a 4-1 victory - taking advantage of great pitching from Jordin King and Emily Dix.