NMSU defeats top-seeded Liberty in CUSA Softball Tournament, 11-3

(Courtesy: NMSU Athletics)

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico - Returning for day two of the Conference USA Championships from the NM State Softball Complex, the Aggies served as the road team against top-seeded Liberty. 

Taking an early lead in the first inning, the Aggies never relinquished, advancing to take on the winner of the LA Tech and Western Kentucky matchup following an 11-3 victory in five innings.

In the Thursday bout, the top half of the lineup served as the catalyst in the victory as NM State’s first five hitters in the lineup accounted for all 13 Aggie hits. In total, Jillian Taylor, Desirae Spearman, Dezianna Patmon, Devin Elam and Riley Carley finished the game 13-of-17 to turn in a .765 batting average in addition to driving home all 11 runs against the Flames.

This charge was led by a two-home run, four-RBI day from junior Dezianna Patmon who now has three home runs for the tournament.

Spearman also logged a multi-RBI outing as she tallied a home run and three RBIs for the Aggies.

In the circle, Emily Dix put together her sixth complete game of the season while picking up her 10th win of the year.

Across five innings of work, Dix notched one strikeout and gave up just six hits.

HOW IT HAPPENED

As was the case in the Aggies’ first game of the CUSA Championships on Wednesday, freshman Desirae Spearman forced her way into the box score in the first inning on Thursday.

Following a leadoff single from Jillian Taylor, Spearman smashed a no-doubt, two-run home run that nearly cleared the batting cages beyond the wall in left field to put the Aggies ahead of the top-seeded Flames early on.

On the defensive side, Emily Dix opened the tilt with a pair of scoreless innings, including a second inning in which Liberty stranded a pair of base runners.

The Aggies later extended their lead to five runs as Dezianna Patmon put one over the wall with two of her teammates standing on base to log her second, third and fourth RBIs of the weekend.

Liberty eventually found its way onto the scoreboard in the bottom of the third as it responded to Patmon’s home run with a three-run inning of its own. This left the Aggies with a two-run lead after three innings of action.

Later, Spearman showed her ability to do it all as she laid down a sacrifice bunt with Jessica Carreon standing on third base - scoring the speedy runner from College Station, Texas, to put the Aggies in front by three runs. Two batters later, Devin Elam managed a bloop single into shallow centerfield with the bases loaded, allowing Jillian Taylor to sprint home from third. Riley Carley then followed Elam’s hit with a single of her own to drive across Spearman and work the Aggie advantage to five runs.

Following a scoreless home half for the Liberty offense, a pair of Aggie base runners came home to score on a pitch that sailed over the catcher’s head. This built the Aggie lead to seven runs. Then, Dezianna Patmon hit a no-doubt home run to give NM an eight-run lead and put the game in run-rule territory. Emily Dix and the Aggie defense then handled business to earn the victory as three-straight batters were retired following a leadoff single.

Head Coach Kathy Rodolph on mentality entering the game

“I knew from the very first time that I saw the team today that they were ready to play. We had three really close games over at Liberty and let the lead slip away so as we left there, we all hoped that we would have the opportunity play one more time.”

Dezianna Patmon on how the team is feeling following the win

“We played for each other today. We know that we can win this thing as a team. I believe that we’re playing very good softball right now so keeping that confidence and keeping that energy up is what gets us through.

NUMBERS OF NOTE

• With three home runs against the Flames, NM State has now compiled six home runs through the first two games of the tournament which is already tied for the second most by a single team in CUSA Championship history.
• The Aggies’ home run onslaught has been powered by Dezianna Patmon who now has three home runs across the first two days of the tournament. This is tied for most by an individual in CUSA Championship history.
• The win gives the Aggies 30 victories on the season to mark the 12th 30-win season in program history and the ninth under the tutelage of Head Coach Kathy Rodolph.

UP NEXT

The Aggies return to action at the NM State Softball Complex on Friday, May 10, at Noon MT for a meeting with the winner of the Western Kentucky and LA Tech. The winner of the Aggies’ next bout will also earn itself a spot in the winner-take-all championship game on Saturday afternoon.

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).