Lubbock - With the help of a five inning no hitter thrown by freshman Arianna Alaniz, the Texas A&M - Kingsville softball team swept No.22 Lubbock Christian in a doubleheader on Sunday, beating them 9-1 (5), and 5-2.

The wins are the second and third respectively over top-25 ranked opponents for the team this season, and move Kingsville to 13-10 overall with an 8-4 record in Lone Star Conference play.


"This series was huge because the whole idea here in the Lone Star Conference is to create momentum," Head Coach Orlando Salinas said. "Beating a great Lubbock Christian team is setting the state for this coming weekend. We always tell our team that the main thing is we learn from our wins and our losses and you can tell that they are growing right in front of our eyes."

Alaniz, who entered the day top five in the conference in strikeouts, added nine punchouts, walked two and hit one, giving up just one run across her complete game no hitter, the first of her collegiate career. Not only that, but Kingsville turned to her once again for the final two innings of game two. Protecting a two run lead, Alaniz retired six straight with four strikeouts and picked up a save in addition to her win from game one. The games come on the heels of an 11-strikeout, two run game that saw her throw a complete six innings against No.4 Angelo on Friday. The 24 strikeout weekend follows one that saw her win the first LSC Pitcher of the Week award of her young career.

While Alaniz carried the day defensively, senior Kaylynne Ruiz dominated offensively. Across the doubleheader, she went 5-6 with two homers, one in each game, and drove in five runs. Though she certainly hit balls much farther, none of her hits were bigger than her single into left field in the top of the sixth in game two, which gave TAMUK its first lead of the game, one they would not relinquish. 

"Our pitching staff is the infrastructure of this team and what makes them really special is their ability to keep their poise when the game gets loud and their ability to sustain a superior focus," Assistant Coach Corky Gallegos said. "They get really locked in and they won't let anything distract them."

Ruiz wasn't the only one that loved the long ball today, as two other Javelinas, sophomore Dakota Martinez and graduate student Lindsey Evans, each hit home runs in the first game as well. Evans' two-run homer came in the fourth to help extend Kingsville's lead, while Martinez's started the party in the top of the second, as she knocked a grand slam into center field to start the day's scoring.

In addition to Ruiz, two other Javelinas had multi-hit games as well in game one. Freshman Alexis Soliz's bat stayed red hot, going 2-3, and senior Sophie Campbell went 2-2, scoring twice. 

Lubbock scored the first runs of game two, scoring two off of two hits and two walks against Kingsville's junior pitcher Kristina Nash in the first inning. TAMUK then turned to freshman Esther Martinez in the circle. She threw a scoreless four innings, giving her her second win this season (2-1), before Alaniz finished out the game. 

The pitchers' run support didn't come until late, but when it did, it came in bunches. Ruiz's homer started the Javelinas' scoring, pulling the team within a run in the fifth. Graduate student AJ Jasso then scored Lindsey Evans with a single in the sixth to tie it up, before Ruiz's single put TAMUK on top by two. Soliz reached on a fielder's choice in the seventh, scoring the game's final run for Kingsville. 

"The goal this weekend was too dominant in every phase and I feel that we met our goal," Head Coach Orlando Salinas said. "We pitched lights out. We got big hits with two outs. Our defense was stellar and when you can put all phases together, the results speak for themselves."

The Javelinas will be back home this weekend for two doubleheaders. First, they play No.7 West Texas at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Friday, before facing Midwestern St. at noon and 2 p.m. on Sunday. Between Sunday's doubleheader, Kingsville will be hosting the Hoggie-Thon Tailgate in support of Driscoll Children's Hospital.
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