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Alejandra Medina vs. MSU Denver - Mar. 26-27, 2023
Brandy Sanderson

Softball takes on West Texas A&M Invitational

2/8/2024 11:00:00 AM

By: Hayden Mangan, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications
DURANGO, Colo. – The Fort Lewis softball team (2-3) is hitting the road once more to close out its non-conference schedule at the West Texas A&M Invitational down in Canyon, Texas, at Schaeffer Park this Friday-Sunday, Feb. 9-11. The Skyhawks will take on fourth-ranked West Texas A&M (4-1), Eastern New Mexico (4-1), and Texas A&M-Kingsville (3-1) through five games.
 
Game Information
Friday, Feb. 9 | 10:15 a.m. & 7:15 p.m.
vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville & Eastern New Mexico
Canyon, Texas | Schaeffer Park
Watch ($) | Live Stats (TAMUK) Live Stats (ENMU) | Tickets
FLC Game Notes | Tournament Central
 
Saturday, Feb. 10 | 12:30 p.m. & 7:15 p.m.
vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville & West Texas A&M
Canyon, Texas | Schaeffer Park
Watch ($) | Live Stats (TAMUK) Live Stats (WTAMU) | Tickets
FLC Game Notes | Tournament Central
 
Sunday, Feb. 11 | 10:15 a.m.
vs. Eastern New Mexico
Canyon, Texas | Schaeffer Park
Watch ($) | Live Stats | Tickets
FLC Game Notes | Tournament Central
 
Last Time Out
Fort Lewis is coming off of its season-openers down at the South Central Softball Tournament in Los Lunas, N.M. The Skyhawks lined up opposite a quartet of Lone Star Conference foes and Simon Fraser from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. FLC dominated Texas Permian Basin (2-3) 14-2 in the season opener before dropping three straight to Simon Fraser (2-4) 11-3, Western New Mexico (3-2) 5-4, and Eastern New Mexico 8-0. Backed by a masterful outing from Amiee Shanks, the Skyhawks closed out the weekend with a massive 5-2 win over WTAMU: the first victory of a Top 25 opponent since 2013.
 
Early Leaders
Kayla Stone and Alex Tenorio have had the hottest bats thus far, recording six hits apiece – both with two doubles – while Stone is tied for the team lead with five runs batted in. Catheryn Rodman has matched Stone with five RBIs and Ashley Burriel with five hits. As a unit, Fort Lewis currently owns the highest batting average of any team in the RMAC at .315. In the circle, Shanks has guided FLC to both of its wins to own a 2-1 record and a 3.05 earned run average through three complete games.
 
Scouting the Javelinas
Texas A&M-Kingsville enters the weekend on a three-game win streak after downing a trio of opponents at the Mardi Gras Invitational in Lafayette, La. The Javelinas out-scored opponents just 19-18 across the weekend while suffering a 7-0 loss to Harding (2-2) in the season opener. Although hitting a combined .240 as a team, the duo of Anissa Lechner and Kayla Gonzales headlines the offense with .444 and .400 averages, respectively. In addition, Lechner and Gonzales have combined for 10 of the Javelinas' 29 total hits. In the circle, all three pitchers for TAMUK have recorded wins thus far with Jordyn Rodriguez leading the way with a 2.00 ERA and .233 BA for opposing hitters.

Scouting the Greyhounds
The Greyhounds dominated at the SCST last weekend en route to hot a 4-1 record after earning run-rule victories in three of its five games. Eastern New Mexico has attacked opposing pitching with a .352 team BA and a perfect 15-15 mark on stolen bases thus far. Taighen Whitzel has torched opponents for 10 hits and six runs through 15 at-bats while also driving in 11 runs. The Senor utility player has two doubles, two triples, and a home run.
 
Sophomore Jordan Rivera has been one of the Lone Star's best in the circle thus far with a 1.40 ERA through 5.0 innings of relief pitching. Rivera has combined for a shutout and allowed only one earned run on two hits to earn a 1-0 record through her two appearances and one start.

Scouting the No. 4 Lady Buffaloes
West Texas A&M will be looking to even the score this weekend after Fort Lewis handed the Buffs its first non-conference loss in two years. The top-ranked Buffs, voted to finish second in the LSC Preseason Coaches' poll, lead the league with a .423 BA and rank third with a 1.75 ERA as a team.
 
WTAMU has out-scored opponents 57-9 thus far largely in part to junior Heidi Vortherms, the reigning LSC Pitcher of the Week. Vortherms owns a perfect 0.00 ERA through 10.0 innings with only three hits and two walks allowed against 18 strikeouts. At the plate, six qualified hitters own a .333 BA or higher headlined by Diana Murtha, a graduate infielder, who owns an astounding .714 BA, .789 on-base-percentage, and is 3-3 on stolen base attempts.
 
Conference Race
The sprint to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament begins at home next weekend as Fort Lewis is slated to host Colorado Mesa (2-4) for a four-game series featuring two doubleheaders spanning Feb. 17-18. Game times are set for 12:00 and 2:00 p.m. on Saturday followed by 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.
 
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