UTEP hurler Aalijah Alarcon threw a complete-game victory and the Miners scored two in the fourth to take a 2-1 victory over Middle Tennessee in game one of Saturday’s doubleheader in front of 420 fans at the Helen of Troy Softball Complex.
MT (19-27, 6-11) bounced back and defeated UTEP (13-29, 3-14), 6-1, in the night cap.
GAME 1: UTEP 2, MT 1
Marijn Crouwel singled to center, plating pinch runner Aaliyah Rebolledo, and Ajia Richard crossed the plate on an error that gave the Miners a 2-0 edge in the fourth inning.
Karina Somoza led off the fourth with a single to right field, and Richard followed by drawing a walk with two outs. Rebolledo was inserted as a pinch runner for Somoza prior to Crouwel’s single to right center on a 2-1 pitch. Jordyn Lopez pinch ran for Crouwel and stole second base that forced an MT error that scored Richard.
Kelci Hill brought the Blue Raiders within a run on a one-out RBI double to left center in the top sixth, but Alarcon kept her composure and forced Amaya Harris to line out to first and Anyce Harvey to pop out to second to maintain the lead, 2-1.
Alarcon (8-13) threw 7.0 strong frames, allowing only four hits and one run. The freshman walked zero Blue Raiders and tallied four K’s.
Somoza (1-3), Crouwel (1-3) and Cheyenne Stark (1-2) each recorded knocks for the Miners.
GAME 2: UTEP 1, MT 6
Ashlee Jacoway homered in her third at bat of the season, a two-run shot over left that gave MT an early 2-0 lead in the second inning. Jacoway finished the game 1-for-2 with three RBI.
Savannah Favre singled up the middle that scored Richard in the fourth inning to make the count 5-1, but MT’s pitchers held the Miners’ bats in check in the rest of the way.
ON DECK
UTEP will host MT in the final game of the weekend’s three-game set. First pitch is set for noon at the Helen of Troy Softball Complex.
Gallery by Ruben R. Ramirez – El Paso Herald Post
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