Over the weekend, the No. 2 Texas Longhorns (14-1) softball team traveled to Palo Alto and swept the DeMarini Invitational that was hosted by the No. 10 Stanford Cardinal (9-4) with the No. 16 Arizona Wildcats (7-11-1), Boise State Broncos (8-8), and Santa Clara Broncos (6-9) in attendance at the tournament.
On Friday, Texas run-ruled No. 16 Arizona in the first game, 12-2. In the opening inning, Texas jumped out after junior shortstop Viviana Martinez was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to score
junior center fielder Kayden Henry. Another bases-loaded walk scored another run. In the third inning, Texas true freshman Matia Lawson knocked a triple down the right field line, nabbing two RBIs to make it 4-0. Arizona made some noise in the bottom of the inning with two RBI singles.
Texas responded with an RBI single from freshman first baseman Hannah Wells and three-run home run from junior Katie Stewart to extend the lead to 8-2. In the top of the seventh, Texas started strong with senior Kaydee Bennett pinch-hitting a double down the left field line to bring in two runs. Henry showed plate discipline on a walk before Goode reached on with an error by the third basemen to bring in the final run, 12-2. Junior right-hander Teagan Kavan (4-0) tossed all seven frames, collecting 10 strikeouts while giving up only three hits and two runs in the Texas victory.
In game two of the doubleheader, Texas edged past tournament host Stanford in a tight 4-3 showdown. In the top of the first, the Longhorns opened up the score with an RBI sacrifice fly from Altmeyer before Stanford outfielder Kyra Chan hit an RBI double to left field to even the game at 1-1. In the third, Stewart hit another three-run home run to left center putting Texas up, 4-1. In the seventh, the Cardinal kept swinging with catcher Izzy Cacatian hitting a sacrifice fly to right field and forcing a Texas throwing error and a muffed catch for the final score. On the mound, sophomore righty Cambria Salmon opened up for Texas tossing 2 frames while Kavan (5-0) closed out pitching 5 innings and collecting 4 strikeouts claiming the win for the Longhorns.
On day two of the DeMarini Invitational, Texas beat Boise State in game one of the doubleheader, 10-0. Texas opened up the score in the top of the second inning with a Stewart solo home run to left field. In the third, Texas played small ball with a RBI bunt single down the third base line, extending the lead to 2-0. Wells smacked an RBI single to left center in the top of the fourth while senior right fielder Ashton Maloney scored two runs with a triple down the right-field line to make it 5-0. Henry closed the top of the fourth for the Longhorns with an RBI groundout to shortstop. In the top of the fifth, senior catcher Reese Atwood launched a solo home run for Texas . before Wells smashed a two-run homer while and Henry slashed an RBI double to center to make it 10-0. On the mound for Texas, senior righty Citlaly Gutierrez pitched all five innings, striking out five and giving up two hits.
As game two commenced, Texas beat Santa Clara, 10-2. The visiting Longhorns opened the top of the first with a RBI single to right center from Atwood, but didn’t score again until the top of the fourth when Stewart sent a two-run homer to center field. In the bottom of the fourth, Santa Clara’s Kyla Acres homered to right field putting the Broncos on the board, 3-1. In the top of the fifth, Altmeyer hit a RBI single to center. Texas made noise in the top of the sixth with Lawson dropping a three-run bomb to right center while the speedy Bennett stole third andand scored on a throwing error by Santa Clara’s catcher to make it 8-1. As the sixth continued, Altmeyer knocked an RBI single. In the bottom of the sixth, Santa Clara’s Kendal Manley pinch hit and homered to center to help out the Broncos, 9-2. In the top of the seventh, Bennett smashed an RBI single down the right side for Texas for the final run of the game to push the lead to 10-2. Salmon started on the mound for Texas, pitching 3.1 frames, allowing six hits and one run before sophomore left-hander Brenlee Gonzales (1-0) closed the game and claimed the win, tossing 3.2 innings with two strikeouts and two hits.
In the final game on Sunday, Texas defeated No. 16 Arizona in another run-rule victory, 12-2. In the bottom of the first, Texas opened up the score with an unearned run after Atwood singled to center and forced a throwing error from the Wildcat center fielder. Fireworks went off in the top of the third, beginning with Stewart getting hit by a pitch and bringing in a run for Texas while Altmeyer snagged an RBI single putting to go up, 3-0. As the third continued, Wells claimed an RBI off a fielder’s choice while true freshman third baseman Jaycie Nichols slapped an RBI single through the right side.
Texas persisted in the third with a Maloney double down the left-field line for two RBIs alongside Henry’s RBI to left center to go up 8-0. The Longhorns kept swinging in the third with another RBI single down the right side, this time from Atwood, and another two RBIs from an Altmeyer single through the right side. In the top of the fourth, Arizona shortstop Tayler Biehl hit a two-run double to left center for the only two runs scored by the Wildcats. In the bottom of the fourth, Texas freshman Caigan Crabtree collected an RBI after grounding out to third. On the mound, Kavan (6-0) claimed the win, tossing four innings with five strikeouts while Wells closed the game by pitching one frame, collecting two strikeouts.
Next, Texas hosts Southeastern Louisiana on Wednesday at 6 p.m. Central on SEC Network+.
