LAS CRUCES, N.M. - After a dominant 4-1 rivalry week, NM State Softball will stay home for another non-conference matchup. The Aggies won two of three against UTEP and followed it up with a doubleheader sweep against New Mexico on Tuesday, improving to 18-12 overall. Head Coach Kathy Rodolph has led her squad to wins in seven of the last eight outings, and has them with the third-best mark in CUSA. Now, the Aggies will look to build on their 12-5 home record against the Toreros of San Diego, who come into Las Cruces with a record of 10-25.

 

How to Follow

Who: San Diego (10-26, 0-0 WCC) at NM State (16-12, 6-3 CUSA)

Where: NM State Softball Complex - Las Cruces, NM

When: Friday, March 29 (Game 1 at 1:00 PM)

Live Stream: ESPN+

Live Statistics: nmstatestats.com

All-Time Series Record: USD leads 1-0

Last Meeting: NM State 0 vs. San Diego 8 (Feb. 28, 2003 - Tucson, Ariz.) 

 

The Aggies welcomed UNM on Tuesday, sweeping both games in comfortable fashion. In the opener, Jillian Taylor smoked a walk-off grand slam to clinch a 9-1 win in the fifth inning. In the nightcap, Devin Elam powered home five RBIs to lead a home 8-4 victory. The Aggies have now won in 18 out of the last 21 meetings with the Lobos. 

 

Over the course of its last eight games, NM State is 7-1, and is nearly doubling its opponents in runs. Across the two weeks, the Aggies are out-scoring opponents 51-26, by an average score of 6.375-3.25. 

Meanwhile, USD split a mid-week doubleheader with Arizona State. The visiting Sun Devils were held to just seven runs across 16 innings, but picked up a nine-inning win in the finale. The 7-4 victory in the opener was the Toreros' 10th of the season, highlighted by a two-run home run from Joecellia Roberts in the third inning. 

 

PATMON POWER

The Aggies' first-ever CUSA win in program history came on Saturday, March 9. The benchmark victory was highlighted by one of the best individual performances by an Aggie in recent history as Dezianna Patmon finished the day 2-for-3 at the plate, including a grand slam to help produce six of the Aggies' nine runs. The six-RBI day for the transfer from North Carolina A&T marked the most RBIs by an Aggie in a single game since Nikki Butler recorded a half-dozen RBIs on April 16, 2021.

 

Patmon is leading the Aggies with 34 hits, 57 total bases and 24 RBIs this season. The junior is also second in home runs (6) and third in OPS (1.157). 

 

FRESHMAN PHENOM

Along with Patmon, freshman standout Desirae Spearman has been a shining star in the Aggie lineup. In just her first 19 games at the collegiate level, Spearman is maintaining a .407 batting average while pacing the Aggies in home runs (9), OPS (1.511), ranking second on the team in RBIs (23), third on the team in total hits (22) and second on the team in total bases (57) despite missing 11 of the Aggies' 30 games due to injury.

Additionally, the El Paso, Texas, native has been dominant in the circle. She has begun the season with a 5-0 record and 37 strikeouts while maintaining a 0.60 ERA in six appearances and 35.0 innings of work.

 

On Feb. 16, Spearman tossed a complete game, shutout victory over Nebraska when she gave up just one hit and led the Aggies to a 3-0 win. In the series finale versus UTEP, she went another 7.0 innings, punching out 12 Miners and securing a win in her first pitching appearance in 35  days.

Currently, Spearman is posting a team-best ERA and has allowed just 22 hits and zero home runs. She also ranks second in the conference with her nine total offensive home runs despite missing nearly half of the Aggies' games due to injury.

 

FEAR NONE

Last month, the Aggies opened the annual Troy Cox Classic with a victory over Big Ten foe Nebraska to mark the program's first win over a Power Five program since the 2020 season when the Aggies defeated the same Nebraska program twice.

The following week, the Aggies added to their list of impressive early victories as they defeated (RV) Grand Canyon on Friday evening before knocking off Arizona State on Sunday morning to tally their second Power Five win of the season and first win over a Pac-12 program since 2020.

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 entered 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 as the Aggies' leader, 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 596-517 record. Making stops at El Paso CC and Angelo State before coming to Las Cruces, Rodolph has an individual mark of 789-612 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.

 

30 FOR 30

After not seeing action in all of 2023 due to injury, Kayla Lunar became the first and only Aggie to start each of the first 30 games in 2024. The Alamogordo High School product has been the model of consistency, appearing at third base in every starting lineup this season. With the bat this season, Lunar has 19 hits, including five extra-base knocks and a no-doubt home run versus UTEP on March 23. The only other Aggie to appear in all 30 contests this season is Dezianna Patmon, who has started 26 games as the designated player.

 

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 Carleyand 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.

 

ON DECK

After the three-game series against the Toreros, NM State will hit the road for the first time in three weeks. NM State will play its fourth CUSA series of the season as it takes on Jax State in 

Alabama. The three-game series will open on Friday, April 5, beginning at 5:00 PM MT. The Aggies and Gamecocks will square off on ESPN+, with live statistics available on nmstatestats.com.

 

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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