TEMPE, Ariz. – The New Mexico State softball team faced Coastal Carolina at Farrington Stadium to open the Devil Classic on Friday. The Aggies fell to the Chanticleers 8-5 despite home runs by Nikki Butler and Kelsey Horton.
"The bottom line is that we need to get better," head coach Kathy Rodolph said. "We need more pieces contributing to help us get better."
CCU (12-5) drew first blood in the contest with a two-run home run in the bottom of the first. After starting pitcher Kayla Green walked the next Chanticleer batter, Rodolph made a change in the circle, bringing in Analise De La Roca to relieve the junior. De La Roca struggled from the start, giving up another home run to Coastal Carolina, putting NM State (9-6) behind 4-0 after an inning.
After a scoreless second for both teams, Horton and Rachel Rodriguez drew back-to-back walks to start a rally for the Aggies. Victoria Castro hit an RBI double down the right field line and Butler hit a three-run blast to right center field to tie the game 4-4. The stalemate was quickly broken up in the top of the following inning as Horton hit her fourth long ball of the season, giving NM State a 5-4 lead.
De La Roca pitched a scoreless fourth but hit trouble in the bottom of the fifth after she hit a batter and gave up a stolen base and a walk to put runner on the corners with no outs in the inning. Rodolph went to her bullpen, bringing in Samaria Diaz to relieve the freshman. Diaz gave up three singles while also hitting a batter, which scored four runs for Coastal Carolina and put NM State behind 8-5 with only one out in the inning. Rodolph brought in Mikayla Bongi as the fourth Aggie pitcher in the contest and the freshman was able to settle in the circle and pitch the final outs of the fifth.
During NM State's following at bat, Horton led off by getting hit by a pitch and Rodriguez followed with a single and advanced to second on throw to put a pair of runners in scoring position with only an out on the board. Fahren Glackin walked to load the bases, but the Aggies were unable to bring a single runner home.
Bongi pitched a scoreless sixth for NM State and looked to the offense with just three outs remaining. NM State was unable to overcome the deficit and fell to CCU 8-5. De La Roca moves to 2-1 with the loss. The freshman pitched 4.0 innings allowing three runs on three hits while striking out five.
The Aggies continue their run at the Devil Classic on Saturday with a pair of games. New Mexico State starts the day with a rematch against Coastal Carolina at 2 p.m. MT. NM State follows the contest with a game against No. 16 Arizona State at 7 p.m.
