KINGSVILLE, Texas – Ten games in two states over the first two weekends of the season have left only a single blemish on the record of the No. 2 Texas A&M-Kingsville softball team in 2020, but they'll be adding more mileage to their odometer when they visit Tucson, Ariz. for five games in three days at the Cactus Classic, which begins on Friday.
The festivities start early for the Javelinas on Friday with a 10 a.m. matchup against the Western Oregon Wolves, followed quickly by a 12:30 p.m. tilt with the Dixie State Trailblazers. The times will remain the same on Saturday but the opponents will change, with the Colorado Mesa Mavericks on the docket first at 10 a.m. and the Hawaii-Hilo Vulcans testing TAMUK in the 12:30 p.m. slot. The last bit of business for the Javs before they return to Texas will be a 10 a.m. meeting with the Fort Smith Skyhawks on Sunday.
Few players have been more instrumental in the Javelinas' 9-1 start than junior Loren Kelly (Rockport, Texas). No player in Division II softball has more stolen bases than Kelly's 16 and in her career in Kingsville, she's swiped 87 bags. Four more thefts will make the outfielder from Rockport the most prolific base stealer in program history. As if that wasn't enough, Kelly has also been her team's leading hitter with a .444 average and her 11 runs scored are tied for 10th in the nation. She's reached home plate for her team in every game but one in 2020.
One of the players responsible for helping Kelly cross the plate so frequently has been sophomore Matisen Onofrei (Mesa, Ariz.). TAMUK's starting backstop followed up an opening weekend in which she hit .421 by slugging .917 in four games at the McGhee-Hawkins Invitational. Her four home runs and 12 RBIs both put her in the top 10 in the Lone Star Conference. She's also thrown out five attempted base stealers in her team's last three games.
Opposing lineups are still trying to solve the puzzle that is sophomore Saidi Castillo (Kingsville, Texas), who has not allowed more than one run and has struck out at least five in each of her five appearances in 2020. Her last time out, Castillo posted her ninth career shutout, blanking Henderson State while limiting them to four hits and striking out six. The right-hander is in the top five in the LSC in wins, ERA, strikeouts and opponent's batting average through 28 innings.
Starting with the tournament's very first day, the Javelinas will be battling talented teams in Tucson. Both Western Oregon and Dixie State received votes in the preseason National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll after each making appearances at NCAA Regionals in 2019.
The Wolves have been red-hot at the plate to the tune of a .344 team average so far in the new year. No one has been more difficult to get out than 2019 NFCA All-American Ayanna Arceneaux. The junior outfielder is hitting .440 with at least one hit in all seven of WOU's games thus far.
Dixie State has started defense of their Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference crown by winning eight-in-a-row after dropping their season opener. Most of that success has been due to the Trailblazers' pitching staff, which has put together a 1.54 ERA, 19th in the country. One year after leading the RMAC with 23 wins, sophomore Carissa Burgess has won her first four starts, allowing only four runs through 24 innings. Burgess and her teammates will face a Javelina team that their program has only taken on once before, in 2007.
Stay current with Javelina softball throughout the 2020 season by following @TAMUKSB on Twitter, @JavelinaSports on Twitter and Instagram, like Javelina Sports on Facebook and subscribe to the Javelina Athletics YouTube Channel. Watch your Javelinas live today on the Javelina Sports Network sponsored by Mendoza's Pharmacy.
