Softball Hits the Road for the First Time in LSC Play

This Week in Rattlers Softball
at Texas Woman's • Feb. 28 • Dianne Baker Field

St. Mary's Rattlers
Record    12-7, 4-2 LSC
Head Coach    Taylor Lira
StMU Record    12-7 (1st Year)

Texas Woman's Pioneers
Record    4-9, 3-3 LSC
Head Coach    Gay McNutt
TWU Record    78-95 (4th Year)

By The Numbers
55 St. Mary's has stolen 55 bases already this season, surpassing last year's total of 43. The Rattlers rank 12th in the nation in stolen bases per game with 2.95 a contest. The team also ranks third overall in total steals.
2 Junior Bryley Westfahl is a big reason for that total as she ranks second in the nation and first in the Lone Star Conference with 21 steals. She is tied for the nation's lead in stolen base percentage, as she's a perfect 21-for-21 in swipes.
3 St. Mary's has recorded three shutouts this season already, with one each by Emery Aguilar, Emily Ayala and Ariella Saenz. The three shutouts ranks second in the Lone Star Conference and 17th nationally.

 

First Road Trip: The St. Mary's Softball team will play its first road doubleheader in Lone Star Conference play, facing Texas Woman's on Saturday at noon. The Rattlers hold a 40-23 all-time lead in the series with the Pioneers.

Last Time Out: St. Mary's went 3-1 at home, splitting the series with Western New Mexico and winning both games against Sul Ross State in run-rule fashion. The Rattlers stole 12 bases in the two games against the Lobos, hitting .432. Against the Mustangs, the Rattlers had 14 hits and 15 walks.

Closing In: Seniors Abigail Dela Rosa and Raegan Tennill are both closing in on hitting milestones. Dela Rosa is 16 hits shy of 100 for her career, while Tennill needs 14 for 150.

Fresh Faces: Freshman Aaliyah De Jesus made her collegiate debut against Sul Ross State on Feb. 22, becoming the final of the eight freshmen to get into a game. She pinch ran and then played the fifth inning at second base, recording the final out of the game one. 

It's In The Game: Senior Emily Ayala became the third different Rattler pitcher to throw a shutout this season, defeating Sul Ross State on Sunday 9-0. Ayala allowed only four hits with one walk and one strikeout, needing only 65 pitches for the win. She joins fellow senior Ariella Saenz (7-0 over St. Edward's) and junior Emery Aguilar (11-0 over Harding) in the shutout column. The Rattlers currently rank second in the Lone Star and 17th in the nation with three shutouts.

Getting On Base: The Rattlers currently have five players who have reached base safely in more than five straight games. Freshman Peyton Travis reached in six straight before suffering a season-ending injury. Junior Iliana Melendez, Raegan Tennill and junior Bryley Westfahl have all reached in eight straight and Abigail Dela Rosa leads the team with a career-long nine-game streak.

On The Fly: St. Mary's leads the Lone Star and ranks second in all of Division II in sacrifice flies, hitting 13 through the first 19 games of the season. Gabriela Banda is seventh nationally with three, while  Miah Corona, Raegan Tennill and Izabella Valdez all have two each, tying for 25th in the nation. 

Early Leads: St. Mary's is 9-4 this season when scoring the first run of the game and 3-3 when the opponent scores first. However, the Rattlers have also been good late, winning two games in walkoff fashion in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Taking The Extra Base: St. Mary's is already 55-for-58 in stolen bases through the first 19 games, ranking 12th nationally with 2.95 per game and third overall with 55. Bryley Westfahl leads the team with 21 swipes, which is more than 11 of the teams in the Lone Star, and ranks second in the nation among individuals. Iliana Melendez (7-7), Raegan Tennill (7-7), Abigail Dela Rosa (5-5), Peyton Miers (4-4), and Miah Corona (3-3), have also successfully stolen three or more bases this season.

Double Trouble: Head Coach Taylor Lira wants the tradition of St. Mary's ranking among the best in the nation in double plays to continue. In five of the last six seasons the Rattlers have ranked in the top 40 in Division II in double plays, including ranking third in 2021. This year's team has already turned seven, ranking 20th out of 232 teams.

Made To Be Broken: Senior Raegan Tennill entered her final season with 11 sacrifice flies in her career, needing two more to break the record, and did it in the first week. Tennill had sacrifice flies against both Mississippi College and Simon Fraser, breaking the school record of 12 held by Vianna Gutierrez-Touchtone (2012-15).

Brought Big Bat: Junior college transfer Iliana Melendez brought a big bat with her from San Jacinto. After hitting .409 last year for the perennial powerhouse team, Melendez is hitting .426 this season for the Rattlers with a .537 slugging percentage and a .492 on-base percentage. Melendez has two doubles and two triples among her 23 hits, and has stolen seven bases.

Walkoff Times Two: Senior Raegan Tennill was at the plate for both of St. Mary's walkoff victories. Against Southeastern Oklahoma, Tennill found the gap in right center to score both Emery Aguilar and Bryley Westfahl, while against Chadron State, Tennill hit a sharp grounder to the right side, that was overthrown by the second baseman, plating freshman Peyton Miers.

They're Smart Too: The LSC recently released the Commissioner's Honor Roll for the fall semester, and 20 softball student-athletes earned at least a 3.30 GPA, including Samiya Johnson, Jaylan Roberson and AJ Sanchez, who all posted a perfect 4.00 in the fall. The others who made the team are Emery Aguilar, Emily Ayala, Gabriela Banda, Miah Corona, Abigail Dela Rosa, Breanna Ford, Neveah Hallmark, Bella Magaro, Madison Magaro, Hannah Melendez, Iliana Melendez, Peyton Miers, Ariella Saenz, Raegan Tennill, Milliana Torrez, Bryley Westfahl and Emma Wilson.