This Week in Rattlers Softball\
NCAA South Central Regional • May 14-16
14 +vs. #7 Colorado Christian 1 p.m.
15 TBD TBD
St. Mary's Rattlers
Record 30-22
Head Coach Taylor Lira
StMU Record 30-22 (1st Year)
Colorado Christian Cougars
Record 53-5
Head Coach Larry Hays
CCU Record 338-93 (8th Year)
Oklahoma Christian Eagles
Record 39-14
Head Coach Shalee Rodriguez
OC Record 189-90 (5th Year)
UT Tyler Patriots
Record 42-12
Head Coach Jason
UTT Record 42-12 (1st Year)
By The Numbers
6 St. Mary's has won the NCAA Regional six times in 18 appearances, winning in 2002 (National Champions), 2003, 2005, 2014, 2015, and 2016. The Rattlers are 38-26 all-time in NCAA Regional action.
7 All seven Rattlers who have hit a home run this season have multiple homers on the year. Gabriela Banda leads the team with seven, while Raegan Tennill has four, Miah Corona and Izabella Valdez each have three and Emily Ayala, Samiya Johnson and Ariella Saenz each have two.
15 Catchers Madison Magaro and Izabella Valdez have combined to catch 15 runners attempting to steal this season. That total is tied for the eighth most in the team's Division II era, tying the 2007 and 2016 squads.
Regional Bound: The St. Mary's Softball team returns to the NCAA Regionals as the eighth-seed after not qualifying a year ago. The Rattlers are 38-26 all-time at the NCAA Regional and have won it six times. The Rattlers face No. 7 Colorado Christian in the first game of the tournament at Noon. The Cougars are the host, but are hosting at MSU Denver. Oklahoma Christian and UTT Tyler square off in the second game of the day. The Eagles and Rattlers have never faced off in the NCAA Regional, while the Patriots defeated StMU in 2024, 5-2.
Against the Cougars: StMU is 3-4 all-time against Colorado Christian and are 0-2 in the NCAA Regional. The two teams met in the 2024 regional at West Texas A&M with CCU winning 3-2 in eight innings and 4-1. The two teams met three times in 2025, with the Rattlers winning both games of the doubleheader on Feb. 6 before the Cougars won 1-0 on Feb. 8.
Legacy: This is the 19th time in 26 years of Division II play at St. Mary's where the Rattlers have advanced to the NCAA Regional. StMU has won the title six times, the last time in 2016. The Rattlers are 0-3 against this year's South Central field, 0-2 against Colorado Christian and 0-1 against UT Tyler.
All-Conference: Gabriela Banda was named to the Lone Star All-Conference Second Team, while Miah Corona and Raegan Tennill both earned Third Team honors prior to last week's conference championship. Junior Iliana Melendez was named to the prestigious All-Academic team, and pitcher Ariella Saenz was voted to the league's Golden Glove team, not making an error in the circle all year.
Tough Tests: Colorado Christian is the fifth nationally-ranked opponent the Rattlers will face in 2026. St. Mary's is currently 1-6 against teams appearing in the top 25 of the NFCA poll.
Coming Through in the Clutch: Junior left fielder Iliana Melendez is hitting .909 when there is a runner on third base and less than two outs (10-for-11). The team is hitting .592 in that situation.
Ending on a High Note: Senior pitcher Ariella Saenz earned the final Lone Star Conference Pitcher of the Week award after dominating the Hilltoppers in the regular season finale. Saenz threw a career-high six strikeouts with only one earned run allowed in a 6-4 win in game one, and then came back to throw a no hitter in game two to complete the sweep. It is the second time this season she's earned the weekly honor, as she also won on March 31 after getting a pair of complete-game victories in Oklahoma, including a shutout of Cameron.
No Hits For You: The no hitter by Ariella Saenz in the regular-season finale at St. Edward's was the first for St. Mary's since 2024 when Breanna Ford no-hit Midwestern State in a five-inning game, and is the 32nd in school history. She is also the first StMU pitcher to ever no-hit the Hilltoppers.
Getting to 30: The two wins at St. Edward's gave the Rattlers a 30-win season for the 24th time in school history. The record for wins in a season is 58 by the NCAA National Championship team in 2002.
No Zeroes Here: Senior Abigail Dela Rosa is hitting .432 this season with runners in scoring position to lead the team. The centerfielder has 19 hits in 44 at bats, and she is also hitting .538 (7-for-13) with a runner on third base and less than two outs.
Fang Awards: Samiya Johnson was named the St. Mary's Department of Athletics Female Breakout Athlete of the Year, while Bryley Westfahl was named the Co-Newcomer of the Year for the women with Brielle Burns from Women's Golf at the end of the year banquet.
Selfless: St. Mary's ranks second in the Lone Star Conference and 17th in the nation with 22 sacrifice flies and fifth in the league and 79th nationally with 35 sacrifice bunts. Sophomore Miah Corona leads the team with four sacrifice flies, which is fifth in the Lone Star, while junior Iliana Melendez leads the league with 0.23 sacrifice bunts per game.
Solo Shots: Fourteen of the team's 23 home runs have come this season with no runners on base, and the last four are all solo. Seven of the last eight for the Rattlers have come with no one on the bases, and Gabriela Banda's last two shots have both led off the inning (4th at WNMU; 5th at St. Ed's).
Setting the Table: When leading off an inning, St. Mary's hitters are doing an excellent job of getting on base, as the team is hitting .411 to begin a frame. Not surprisingly, the usual leadoff hitter, Bryley Westfahl, leads the team with 34 hits, and she's hitting .395 as the first to bat in an inning. Iliana Melendez has the highest average at .650 (13-for-20), and Gabriela Banda is hitting .472 (17-for-36).
Shutout Times Four: Senior Ariella Saenz threw her fourth complete-game shutout in the 4-0 no-hitter victory in game two at St. Edward's. She ranks third in the Lone Star and 62nd nationally with four shutouts, and she is one of four Rattlers to throw one this season, as Emery Aguilar, Emily Ayala and Breanna Ford each have one. It is the first time in St. Mary's DII history that four different pitchers have thrown a complete game shutout.
Chaos on the Bases: St. Mary's has stolen 108 bases in 2026, ranking 30th nationally with 2.08 stolen bases per game. The 108 swipes ranks 5th on the St. Mary's single-season list for most steals, and is only 20 off the school record of 128 by the 1990 team.
Super Swipers: For only the fourth time in St. Mary's Division II era there are four players with 10 or more stolen bases in a season. Bryley Westfahl has 32 steals, while Raegan Tennill has 17, Abigail Dela Rosa has 15, and Iliana Melendez has 12. The 2003, 2006 and 2023 teams also had four players with double digit thefts, and Dela Rosa swiped 12 in 2023 in her first season.
Helping Hand: Senior Raegan Tennill ranks 18th in the nation in assists and second in the Lone Star Conference with 132. Tennill is now seventh in St. Mary's history with 372 career assists, passing Kristal Salinas (368, 2016-19).
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 turned 24, ranking 13th out of 265 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 now has 14 sacrifice flies for her career, bettering the school record of 12 held by Vianna Gutierrez-Touchtone (2012-15).
You're Out!: Sophomore first baseman Miah Corona collected 18 putouts in the win at Cameron on March 29. It ties for the third-most in a single game in StMU history, and is the most since Destiny Salinas had 20 on March 2, 2024. The 18 chances also tie for the fifth-most in Rattlers history.
Making Milestones: Sophomore Miah Corona recorded the 100th his of her career in the LSC Tournament against UT Tyler. Senior Abigail Dela Rosa is three runs shy of scoring 100 and senior Ariella Saenz needs one more strikeout to fan her 100th at StMU. Senior Raegan Tennill is four stolen bases away from 50 for her career.
