ODESSA, Texas (Softball) – The Texas A&M-Kingsville softball team continued their hitting ways by banging out 24 hits and producing 13 runs on Friday afternoon. The Javelinas defeated
the UT-Permian Basin Falcons 3-2 and 10-3 to improve to 12-5 overall and 5-3 inside the Lone Star Conference.

With the defeats, UTPB is now 3-17 on the year, 1-5 in the LSC, and has dropped five straight contests.

GAME ONE
The Hoggies drew first blood courtesy of Victoria Schoonard-Saborio in the 3^rd. Vic laced a single which scored Lindsey Angelico to put TAMUK on top 1-0.

Solo homers by Cindy Juarez (2) in the 4^th and Adrianna Berzoza (3) in the 6^th put the Falcons in the lead 2-1 heading to the final frame.

The Javelinas got a nice start to the 7^th inning when Rachel Longoria and Schoonard-Saborio recorded hits to put runners on the corners. Randa Hatter then drew a walk off UTPB pitcher Chelsae Faries to load the bases. After Faries struck out Roxy Chapa, Alexei Gonzalez hit into a fielder's choice which allowed Longoria to come in to tie the game at 2. Vic scored during a pickoff attempt of Gonzalez to give the Javs the run they needed.

Chelsae Faries (0-3) went the entire seven innings for the Falcons, allowing seven hits, three runs, five walks, and fanning three. The Junior pitcher has now taken the loss in three of her last four appearances.

TAMUK used three pitchers to secure the Game One victory. Carlie Clark allowed just five hits, one run, and one free pass over 3.1 innings. Sarah Gilbert (3-0) won the decision by allowing just the Berzoza solo shot over 2.2 innings of work. Breanna Smith faced five batters in the 7^th and worked her way out of a jam to earn her first collegiate save.  

GAME TWO
The Freshman pitcher wasted no time getting back to work for the Blue and Gold. Less than an hour after saving Game One, Smith (5-2) went back to the circle where she would remain for the entire contest. Bree yielded four hits, three earned runs, and six walks on her way to getting complete game #4 of the season. Smith set a new team season-high by punching out 15 batters.

Longoria got support for her pitcher early by slugging a leadoff home-run (her third of the year) to open the scoring.

The most successful offensive inning of the day occurred in the 4^th. It was a frame that saw six runs come into score, three via a Randa Hatter long ball which broke a 3-3 tie. Arabella Acosta-Cantu and Longoria also drove in runs in the half-inning.

In a game where they registered 17 hits, eight of the nine Javelina players had at least one knock and the top three in the lineup (Longoria, Schoonard-Saborio, Hatter) went a combined 12-15 at the plate with 7 RBI's.

STREAKS
Rachael Longoria entered today's action on a 9-game on-base streak. She improved on that and then some by going 2-4 in Game One and 4-5 with 3 RBI's in Game Two. Along with lengthening her on-base streak to 11, she now has hit safely in five straight games.

Victoria Schoonard-Saborio killed the Falcons all afternoon by going 6-8 at the plate and also drawing a walk in Game One. The sophomore from Elk Grove, California recorded multiple hits
in each game for the seventh and eighth times this season and will look to extend a nine-game hitting streak on Saturday.

Haley Boyett had a little more modest afternoon in the batter's box, but did record a hit in each of the games played on Friday. She now has an eight-game hitting streak and the team is 7-1 when she hits out of the six spot in the lineup.     

NEXT UP
The Javelinas finish up their weekend series against the Falcons with a 1 p.m. tilt on Saturday afternoon in Odessa.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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