LAS CRUCES, N.M. - After a 279-day offseason, New Mexico State Softball is poised to begin a historic campaign. Not only will this upcoming season be NM State's 50th, but the Aggies will represent Conference USA for the first time. To start the year, NM State hosts Monmouth for a doubleheader on Friday, and Abilene Christian for a pair on Saturday. On both days, the matchups are scheduled for 2:00 PM and 4:30 PM MT.
New Year, New Conference
In 2023, the Aggies finished 21-25 overall, with a 10-14 mark in WAC play. On July 1, 2023, NM State joined Conference USA, and will be a first-year member of the league in 2024. Also new to the conference are Jax State (ASUN), Liberty (ASUN) and Sam Houston (WAC). FIU, LA Tech, Middle Tennessee, UTEP and Western Kentucky are the five returning members of the conference.
Golden Anniversary
NM State Softball played its first season in 1975. Now, in 2024, the Aggies enter season No. 50, with 1,144 wins and a much loftier reputation. The program was the class of the WAC for over a decade, earning six regular-season crowns and four conference tournament championships. Softball was NM State's second women's team sport, and has brought 10 championship trophies home to Las Cruces. This May, the Aggies will look to win the CUSA Tournament Championship on their home soil.
Legendary Status
Entering her 21st season, Head Coach Kathy Rodolph is already easily the winningest coach in program history. Before Rodolph, the program had not won a championship (regular-season or tournament). Under her direction, the Aggies have claimed 10 pieces of hardware, and boast a 578-505 record. Making stops at El Paso CC and Angelo State before coming to Las Cruces, Rodolph has an individual mark of 771-600 as a head coach. At NM State, she has recruited and coached 17 NFCA All-Region members and eight WAC Player of the Year winners. The Aggies have won 20 or more games in 17 seasons under Rodolph.
Best of the Best
In the program's first year in a new conference, two Aggies have already stood out among the league. Last month, CUSA unveiled its Preseason All-Conference Team, highlighted by Riley Carley and Kendal Lunar. The pair of seniors each put forth stellar campaigns in 2023, and will look to lead their team into new territory in 2024.
Riley Carley started all 44 games she appeared in last season, leading the team with 16 home runs and 14 walks. In her junior year, she ranked second among all Aggies in RBIs (30), batting average (.346), slugging percentage (.750) and OPS (1.012). Carley was named to the All-WAC Second Team in 2023.
As a true freshman, Kendal Lunar made quite the impression in 2023. The first-year Aggie posted six home runs and 20 RBIs with an OPS of .870. Starting 38 games in total, including each of the final 30 a season ago, Lunar is poised for a productive 2024 campaign behind the plate as a sophomore, and was selected to the CUSA Preseason All-Conference Team accordingly.
Scouting Monmouth
Like the Aggies, Monmouth begins their season inside the NM State Softball Complex on Friday as they match up with the Aggies for a doubleheader. The Hawks are coming off a 2023 campaign in which they posted a 10-34 overall record and an 8-16 in Coastal Athletic Association play.
Ahead of this season, Monmouth was selected to finish 10th in the 12-team CAA. In the same vote, infielder Mackenzie Bloss and pitcher Billie Kerwood were named to the 2024 CAA Softball Preseason Watch List.
Monmouth's roster also features former Aggie Ana Hernandez who enters her first season with the Hawks after pitching 4.1 innings and recording four strikeouts as a junior with the Aggies in 2023.
The Hawks are led by Shannon Salsburg who enters her ninth year at the helm of Monmouth and has helped lead the Hawks in their transition from the MAAC to the CAA.
Saturday's meetings between the Aggies and Hawks will mark the first-ever matchups featuring the two programs.
Scouting Abilene Christian
Following a Friday spent in El Paso, the Wildcats will make the 40-mile drive to Las Cruces to meet up with the Aggies. This will be the first time that the two programs will meet up since the Aggies departed the WAC.
While the Wildcats and Aggies shared a conference for two seasons, they squared off in just one series. In fact, NM State played its last games of the 2023 season against ACU, winning each of the last two games in convincing fashion. The Aggies narrowly missed out on the WAC Tournament, so they will play the Wildcats for a fourth and fifth time, only separated by the Monmouth doubleheader a day prior.
ACU was selected to finish ninth in the 10-team WAC. There were no Wildcats on the 2024 Preseason All-WAC Team.
The Wildcats are led by fifth-year Head Coach Abigail Farler, who has led the program in its move from the Southland Conference to the WAC.
For complete coverage of NM State Softball during the 2024 season, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of the Aggies – and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Softball), Twitter (@NMStateSoftball) and Instagram (@NMStateSoftball).
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