Wednesday, March 3
vs. #6 Florida (4 p.m., Live Stats)
Gainesville, Fla.


LAS CRUCES, N.M. - The NM State Aggies (3-9) will compete in its first midweek matchup of the year against the sixth-ranked Florida Gators (12-0) Wednesday afternoon in Gainesville, Fla. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. There will be no stream to the game but fans can follow along at http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=338110.

Going Through the Gauntlet
The NM State Aggies are off to a rough start in the 2021 season but have been challenged with a gauntlet of a schedule. Through 12 games, the Aggies have faced a nationally-ranked opponent in five of those games. This is the only time in program history that the Aggies will have played six games against nationally-ranked opponents in its first 13 games of the year. In 2018, the Aggies opened up the season with five ranked opponents in its first 12 games. 

Aggie Rundown 

• Slap hitter Hailey Tanori leads the team in batting average, hits and doubles. Tanori is hitting .361 and has used her speed on the base paths to go 3-for-4 in stolen base attempts this year. Tanori is currently on a five-game hitting streak. 
• Redshirt freshman Matalasi Faapito is second on the team in batting average, as she is hitting .310. She has knocked in four runs and has had one home run on the year.
• Junior Kayla Bowen has been a nice surprise for the Aggies, as she is hitting .261 on the year with two doubles and two RBIs.
• The Aggies continue to get its power from redshirt freshman Ramsay Lopez. Lopez has hit a team-leading three home runs on the year and has knocked in a team-high seven RBIs.
• Redshirt senior Nikki Butler usually finds her way on base, but it may not be in the most conventional way. Butler is well on her way to break her own single-season hit-by-pitch record. Butler set the record in 2018, as she was hit 18 times, and so far in 2021, Butler has been hit eight times, which leads the NCAA. 
• In the circle, Faapito leads the way for the Aggies with a 4.90 ERA. Last time out against Stetson, Faapito threw all eight innings and allowed just two earned runs while striking out a season-high five batters. 

Scouting the Gators
The perennial-power Florida Gators are off to another great start, as they are 12-0 in the 2021 season. The Gators are led by its pitching, as they have a staggering team-ERA of 0.71. The Gators have allowed just 10 runs in 12 games and are led by junior Elizabeth Hightower who holds a 0.71 ERA in seven appearances. 

In the batter's box, junior Hannah Adams will lead the way with a .486 batting average. She has knocked in 10 runs on the year for the Gators and is 3-for-3 in stolen base attempts. 

Looking for the Upset
Florida will be the third nationally-ranked team the Aggies have faced so far this season, as they were swept by #24 UCF and lost two games last weekend to #12 Kentucky at The Spring Games. The Aggies wil be looking for its first win against a nationally-ranked opponent since 2020 when they defeated #17 Arizona State. The Aggies will be looking for its 12th win ever over a nationally-ranked team against the Gators.

The Series
This will be just the second time these two teams have ever faced each other on the diamond. The two teams faced each other on February 26, 2000, with the Gators coming away with a 12-4 victory.

Follow the Aggies on Twitter (@NMStateSoftball), Instagram (nmstatesoftball) and Facebook (NM State Softball) for updates throughout the season.

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