The Tarleton State softball team has had an impressive season so far. They have an overall record of 23-17 and a conference record of 8-7. The Texans began their season on Feb. 11 at the Furman Tournament in Greenville, South Carolina. They came into this tournament firing on all cylinders and went undefeated over the weekend where they returned with a 5-0 record They then showed up and showed out at the Whataburger Softball Invitational held on Feb. 18 – 20.

The Whataburger Tournament held the first games on the newly turfed field for Tarleton Softball. The weekend began on Feb. 18, and the Texans’ first opponent was Syracuse. This game was a thriller, and ended as a walk-off win, with the final score being 2-1. Going into this competition, both Tarleton and Syracuse were undefeated. Tristan Bridges pitched for the Texans as she competed in a pitching duel against  Syracuse pitcher, Lindsey Hendrix, for the first six innings. Syracuse scored one run in the fourth inning on an error by Tarleton. The game remained at a standstill with the Orange on top 1-0 until the seventh inning when the Texans showed just how tough they were. Brittany Coe stepped up to the plate and battled the count to 3-2, with a full count, she launched a home run to tie the game 1-1. Just moments later, Miranda Pruitthit another home run to give Tarleton the walk-off win. 

The Texans finished the tournament undefeated and ready to travel to New Mexico for the Lobo Classic which began on Feb. 25. It was in New Mexico that they were handed some of their first losses, and went 1-4 on the weekend. However, they came back and went to work in preparation for their doubleheader against Texas Southern University on Mar. 1. The first game ended with a score of 5-3, and the second ended in a six-inning run-rule 10-2. 

On Mar. 4-5, The Texans traveled to Lake Charles, Louisiana to play McNeese State in a three-game series. They started off strong, winning the first game of the series 5-4. However, they found themselves unable to finish the weekend strong and lost both games on Saturday. They traveled back to Stephenville and began to prepare for conference play. 

The first Western Athletic Conference matchup for the Texans was Sam Houston State on Mar. 12. The Texans were fortunate enough to get to begin conference play at home, and they swept the Bearkats over the weekend. 

On Mar. 16, the Texas Tech Softball team made the trip to Stephenville for a one-game matchup against the Texans. This game brought a sold-out crowd to the stadium, but unfortunately, Tarleton could not pull out the win with a final score of 3-2.  Tristan Bridges started in the circle for the Texans and had a strong first inning, sitting down three Red Raiders in a row. Following that, Morgan Medford lit up the Tarleton offense with a leadoff triple in the bottom of the first. Medford scored on a sacrifice fly ball by Amanda DeSario to give Tarleton the lead 1-0. Tech then put up one run in the third, fourth, and fifth innings which put them ahead 3-1. In the bottom of the fifth inning, Georgia Capell hit the 58th home run of her career to cut Tech’s lead to one. While the Texans did not go down without a fight, the Red Raiders were able to seal the deal and leave Stephenville with a win. 

The Texans then went through a bit of a rough patch, going just 1-8 in their next nine games, with the only win being against Abilene Christian University. 

On Apr. 8 the Texans faced off against  Sam Houston State in a three-game WAC matchup. The first two games ended in Tarleton’s run ruling of the Bearkats in five innings. The third game, however, was not as easy. Game three ended with a 15-10 Texan win in extra innings, nine to be exact. The game ultimately became an offensive battle. Morgan Medford had four hits in the game, and Georgia Cappell had three. Cappell, Katy Schaefer, and Brady Rowland all totaled 14 RBIs, which is no surprise as they are the power of the Tarleton lineup. The Texans went to Huntsville ready to battle, and they did just that. All while coming home with the sweep. 

The Texan softball team is full of positive energy and a lot of grit. They may not win every game, but they fight in every game. They are doing a great job competing at the Division I level, and will only improve moving forward.