Softball: Battle of the Saints Times Two

This Week In Rattlers' Softball
St. Edward's vs. St. Mary's
April 4 & 6 // Games 40-43 // San Antonio // Austin
Broadcast: FloCollege
 

St. Edward's
Record    21-17, 15-13 LSC
Ranking    NR
Head Coach    Hailey Post
SEU Record    39-51 (2nd Year)
Career Record    74-67-2 (3rd Year)
 

St. Mary's Rattlers
Record    20-19, 15-13 LSC
Ranking    NR
Head Coach    Ronnie Ladines
StMU Record    20-19 (1st Year)
Career Record    Same
 

Travel Partner Week: The St. Mary's Softball team faces rival St. Edward's both in San Antonio and in Austin this week, as all the teams in the Lone Star Conference face their travel partner both home and on the road.

Donna Fields Day: On Friday after the conclusion of the doubleheader, the Rattlers will celebrate the storied career of longtime coach Donna Fields. Fields was the head coach for 27 years, amassing a record of 1076-508. In her 24 seasons in NCAA Division II, Fields had 141 All-Conference selections, 22 All-American selections and 18 Academic All-District selections.

Familiar Faces: Longtime fans of St. Mary's Softball will have no trouble recognizing St. Edward's Head Coach Hailey Post in the opposing dugout this week. Post spent 2018-2023 as an assistant coach for the Rattlers, helping lead the team to two Heartland Conference regular season championships and two NCAA Regional appearances.

Shutting Them Down: Senior pitcher Madeline Bloom had a stellar week last week, allowing only one earned run through 14 innings of work. She pitched a complete game shutout against then-No. 1 UT Tyler and allowed opponents to hit only .180 against her. The right-hander struck out six.

A Burst of Speed: One week after hitting her first home run of the season, senior catcher Mene'e Padilla blasted the first triple of her career, placing the ball perfectly down the right field line against Texas Woman's. Padilla has hit for the cycle this season, as three of her eight hits on the year are for extra bases.

Round Two: Sunday begins the second round of East Division play in the Lone Star Conference. The Rattlers are currently 5-7 against teams in the east, with the two games on Friday wrapping up the first round. StMU went 10-6 against the West Division. Four of the top six teams in the overall standings come from the East in UT Tyler, Oklahoma Christian, St. Edward's and St. Mary's.

A Helping Hand: Sophomore Gabriela Banda continues to lead the Lone Star Conference in both assists (98) and assists per game (2.51). Those totals rank her 13th and 28th in the Division II statistics. Banda also ranks ninth in the LSC with 11 doubles.

Youth Movement: Five freshmen have started at least 10 games this season, with them combining for 96 starts. Miah Corona leads the way, starting 37 of 39 games, while Jaylan Roberson has started 23, Izabella Valdez 13, Araceli Arevalo 12, and Milliana Torrez 11.

Closing In: Senior Jadyn Abrego (46) and junior Emily Ayala (48) are both closing in on 50 hits for their career. The two pitchers each concentrated on pitching their sophomore campaigns, but have returned to playing both ways.

For the Good of the Team: Both Emily Ayala and Gabriela Banda are currently tied for the team lead with three sacrifice flies. They each need one more to tie for 10th on the St. Mary's single season list. The school record for sacrifice flies in a season is seven by Reba Reyes in 2023.

KPI: The KPI is a metrics system that ranks teams' resumes on a game-by-game basis used by the NCAA for seeding purposes. The Rattlers currently rank 53rd in the nation with a KPI of .162. That ranking is fifth among Lone Star Conference teams, trailing UT Tyler (2), West Texas A&M (7), Angelo State (20), and Oklahoma Christian (37). Eight of the 16 teams in the LSC rank within the top 100.

Getting the Hits: St. Mary's currently ranks third in the Lone Star Conference and 25th in the nation with 330 hits. West Texas A&M leads the LSC and Division II with 418 hits.

Century Mark: Junior 3B Reagan Tennill recorded the 100th hit of her career against Texas Woman's on Monday. Tennill has 16 doubles, five triples and three home runs among the 100 hits.

Offense & Defense: Emily Ayala has been getting it done at the plate and in the circle this season. The junior leads the team with a 7-2 record, pitching three complete games. Opponents are hitting .252 against her and she sports a 2.65 ERA. Offensively, she is hitting .333, leads the team with five home runs and is third on the team with 26 RBIs.

Career Achievements: Three seniors currently rank among the top 50 in Division II career active leaders.
Name    Category    Stat    Rank
Lauren Gonzales    Stolen Bases    90    8
Lauryn Ramos    Games Played    193    44
Savannah Youngblood    Saves    10    5

Youngblood also ranks 26th among all three Divisions, while Gonzales ranks 33rd.

Fresh Honor: After hitting .545 over the four games at UTPB and SRS with two doubles, three RBIs and 18 putouts, catcher/designated player Izabella Valdez was named the Lone Star Conference Freshman of the Week. She is the first-ever Rattler to win the newly created award.

It's An Honor: Senior pitcher Madeline Bloom earned Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week honors after going 2-0 in starts in the South Central Regional Crossover. In 15.0 innings, Bloom allowed only one earned run and teams hit .130 against her. In her relief appearance, Bloom needed only seven pitches in two innings of work.

Saving the Day: Senior Savannah Youngblood broke the St. Mary's career saves record against MSU Denver, earning the 10th of her career. She breaks Ashley Mills mark of nine from 2016-17. Youngblood collected four saves each in 2022 and 2024 and has two this year.