LAS CRUCES, N.M. - 50 regular seasons have come and gone for NM State Softball. Now, in their first year as CUSA members, the Aggies will host the six-team, double-elimination tournament on their home soil. The Aggies finished as the No. 4 seed, setting up a date with fifth-seeded Jax State in the first game of the four-day championship.
How to Follow
Who: (1) Liberty, (2) WKU, (3) LA Tech, (4) NM State, (5) Jax State, (6) UTEP
Where: NM State Softball Complex - Las Cruces, N.M.
When: Wednesday May 8 - Saturday May 11 (12:00 PM MT start each day)
Live Stream: ESPN+ (Wednesday-Friday), CBS Sports Network (Saturday)
Live Statistics: nmstatestats.com
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Aggies are participating in their 18th conference tournament under Head Coach Kathy Rodolph, but their first in Conference USA. In total, Coach Rodolph has led the Aggies to 33 tournament victories and four NCAA Regional berths - doing so most recently in 2018.
With the absence of 2023 tournament champion Middle Tennessee, the league will increase its streak of years without a repeat champion to 12. The Aggies will also be one of four teams playing in Las Cruces that are seeking their first-ever CUSA tournament title - joined in this category by UTEP and fellow first-year members Liberty and Jax State.
Additionally, NM State will look to become the sixth program in league history and third in the last four years to host the tournament and hoist the trophy in the same year. Most recently, North Texas was crowned champions in front of its home crowd in 2022.
LAST TIME OUT
NM State fell in the final two games at Middle Tennessee, narrowly missing out on CUSA's third overall seed. Emily Dix continued her exceptional work in the circle, tossing a complete-game shutout in the series opener, striking out seven Blue Raiders. The win was her ninth of the season, her fifth complete game and the fourth in shutout fashion.
The Aggies' offense slowed down, producing just eight runs across the weekend. A Devin Elam three-run home run gave the Aggies early life in the series finale, but the Blue Raiders came back on their Senior Day to win 4-3.
The Aggies have now outscored their opponents 41-38 over the past three series, but have won just three games. None of the three opponents (Liberty, LA Tech and MTSU) outscored NM State, but each took two of three games. Excluding the sixth and seventh inning of Friday's affair with LA Tech, the Crimson & White have outscored opponents by 11 over the past nine games. Five one-run losses turned what would instead be an 8-1 record over that span into a mark of just 3-6.
SHINING STARS
Conference USA unveiled its 2024 Softball Postseason Awards on Tuesday, May 7. Four Aggies earned all-league honors, led by Desirae Spearman. The freshman was named CUSA Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, landing two spots on the All-CUSA First Team and one on the All-CUSA Freshman Team. Dezianna Patmon was named CUSA Newcomer of the Year, earning a spot on the conference's First Team. Devin Elam joined Patmon and Spearman on the First Team, while Jillian Taylor was voted to the All-CUSA Second Team.
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 55 hits, a .387 batting average and 102 total bases while ranking tied for first with 38 RBIs. She is also second on the team with 11 home runs and an OPS of 1.178 this season.
FRESHMAN PHENOM
Along with Patmon, freshman standout Desirae Spearman has been a shining star in the Aggie lineup. In just her first 34 games at the collegiate level, Spearman is maintaining a .345 batting average while pacing the Aggies in home runs (16), OPS (1.285) and RBIs (38). The El Paso native also ranks second in total bases (95) and fourth on the team in total hits (39) despite missing 14 of the Aggies' 48 games due to injury.
Additionally, the El Paso, Texas, native has been dominant in the circle. She has begun the season with an 8-3 record and 66 strikeouts while maintaining a 3.04 ERA in 15 appearances and 73.2 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, allowing just 62 hits and nine home runs. She is also tied for first in the conference and ranks 24th nationally with her 16 total offensive home runs despite missing nearly a third of the Aggies' games due to injury.
For her efforts, Spearman has been named CUSA Pitcher of the Week once and has earned five CUSA Freshman of the Week awards. On Thursday, April 25th, Spearman was named to the 2024 TUCCI/NFCA Freshman of the Year Top 25 list. She was named CUSA Player of the Year, CUSA Freshman of the Year, and became the first member in CUSA history to receive two separate First Team spots (pitcher and outfield).
POWER IN THE OUTFIELD
When Spearman is not in the circle, she will regularly tend to left field. Again, the freshman with six CUSA weekly awards has proven to be a threat from anywhere. Joining her in the outfield are Jillian Taylor and Devin Elam.
Taylor and Elam were each named CUSA Player of the Week in April, just 14 days apart. Taylor, the senior in center field, has started 49 of 51 games in center, tallying a .351 batting average to go with eight home runs, 20 extra-base hits, 52 hits and an OPS of 1.041. Across the middle of April, she went on an 11-game hitting streak, crushing her previous career-high mark of five games. The senior leads the entire conference with 48 runs scored in the campaign.
Devin Elam is one of the hottest hitters in the conference, as well as the country. The sophomore is traditionally in right field as of late and was named Player of the Week on April 15. In CUSA games, she is batting .449, ranking second among league batters. Elam is currently on an 14-game hitting streak, setting a new career high. At the plate, she has 44 hits, a .431 average and a 1.091 OPS on the season. The Long Beach, Calif. native now has 19 RBIs in her past 16 outings.
The entire starting outfield for NM State was named to the two All-CUSA Teams. Taylor landed a spot on the second team, while Elam and Spearman were on the First Team. Spearman also earned a First Team spot as a pitcher.
EM'MACULATE SENIOR DAY
On Sunday, April 28, NM State recognized eight graduating seniors in the 2024 class. All eight entered the starting lineup, including Emily Dix who received the nod in the circle. Dix was remarkable, tossing a complete game shutout, allowing just one hit and five total baserunners in a 6-0 win.
After allowing a leadoff walk, Dix retired 12 straight Bulldog batters. The visitors were held hitless until the top of the seventh inning. The senior surpassed her previous career high of seven strikeouts, punching out nine Bulldogs to take the team lead with 59 this season. The win represented her fourth complete game and third shutout of the season. The second-year Aggie from Albuquerque was named CUSA Pitcher of the Week on April 29th for her immaculate one-hitter.
FEAR NONE
In February, 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 is a first-year member of the league. 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 week, 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 606-528 record. Making stops at El Paso CC and Angelo State before coming to Las Cruces, Rodolph has an individual mark of 799-623 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.
With their 20th win against San Diego on March 30, the Aggies have won 20 or more games in 18 seasons under Rodolph. The 21st-year head coach became the first coach in program history to surpass 600 wins with NM State after a walk-off three-run home run gave the Aggies a 9-6 win over FIU on Friday, April 12.
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 Aggies 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
This week, NM State will be battling with the other five CUSA institutions for the CUSA title. The title will also allow the winning program to represent the conference at the NCAA Regionals, which will be played on May 16-19. A win for the Aggies would mark a return to the NCAA Regionals for the first time since 2018 and the fifth time in program history with all four previous appearances coming under the lead of Head Coach Kathy Rodolph.
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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