Posted: Feb 04, 2021
TLU Softball opens year with doubleheader split against D2 St. Mary's (Texas)
Game 2
Game 2
Texas Lutheran
(1-1)
3
St. Mary's (Tex.)
(0-0)
4
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Texas Lutheran | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
|
St. Mary's (Tex.) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 4 | 6 | 3 |
Game 1
Game 1
Texas Lutheran
(1-0)
4
St. Mary's (Tex.)
(0-0)
2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Texas Lutheran | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 3 |
|
St. Mary's (Tex.) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 1 |
SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- Texas Lutheran split a Thursday night doubleheader against NCAA Division II program St. Mary's (Texas) with TLU taking the first game 4-2 and the Rattlers grabbing the second game 4-3.
Both games counted as regular-season contests for TLU, the defending national champion of NCAA Division III.
The two games were counted as exhibitions for St. Mary's.
In the Bulldog victory, second-year freshman Sydney Ouellette went the distance in the circle. The 5-10 right-hander allowed two earned runs, scattered six hits, and struck out five.
Ouellette (1-0) worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh to secure the win.
All-American outfielder Kelly Jurden stole a base, scored two runs, walked twice, and had a hit in the victory.
Fellow outfielder Chassey Raines went 3-for-4, and designated player Rebecca Snow went 2-for-4 with a run scored and two RBI.
Haley Padilla recorded two hits and an RBI for the Bulldogs.
In game two, TLU fell behind 4-1 before rallying for a pair of runs in the top of the sixth to cut St. Mary's lead to 4-3.
In the sixth, McKay Bloxham doubled to left-center to drive in Snow, and Raines drove in the third run with a sacrifice fly that scored Padilla.
Jurden stole two bases in the late game to break the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference career record for steals. Jurden now has 116, eclipsing Trinity's Karen MacPherson's total of 115. MacPherson had 115 steals in 160 games from 2009-12.
Jurden has 116 steals in 111 career games.
Thursday's games were TLU first contests since March 14, 2020, when TLU swept a doubleheader from Trinity (Texas). The Bulldogs were 19-1 in 2020 when the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. TLU won the 2019 NCAA Division III National Championship.
TLU is ranked second in the NFCA's Preseason Poll for NCAA Division III. The Bulldogs are picked by the SCAC coaches to win a seventh consecutive conference championship.
The Bulldogs do not play again until Saturday, Feb. 13 when they host Our Lady of the Lake (Texas). The Bulldogs and Saints are set for a 2 p.m. start.