RIO RANCHO, N.M.– The Texas A&M University-Commerce softball team split their games against two nationally ranked opponents on Saturday. The Lions defeated No. 22 St. Mary's 8-2 early in the day before falling to No. 8 Colorado Mesa 14-6 in the afternoon.
 
The results bring the Lions to 3-1 for their season.
 
A&M-Commerce will return to action on Sunday for the final game of their five-game tournament to open the season. The Lions will face Metro State at 10 a.m. MST in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Mariah Jameyson went 5-of-7 with two doubles and three RBIs. She also scored three times.
- Emily Otto pitched a complete game in the Lions' win over No. 22 St. Mary's. She recorded 10 strikeouts in her second win of the year. Her 10 K's are the second most in a game in team history.
- Ciera Nunez went 5-of-8 and was a perfect 3-for-3 when stealing bases. She scored two times.
- Chealsea Slider also went 5-of-8 with two doubles and a triple. She had two RBIs and slugged a team-high 1.125.
- Baylea Higgs and Kinsie Hebler both hit .500. Hebler had two doubles and two RBIs while Higgs also had a stolen base. Higgs scored twice while Hebler scored once.
- Kimber Neal also hit .500 with three singles. She had three RBIs and a run scored.
- Vanessa Avina had two doubles, two RBIs and a run scored. Vanessa Muro also had an RBI.
- Chloe Horn and Precious Thompson both scored twice as pinch runners.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED (Game 1)
After a leadoff walk from Nunez, she stole second. Hebler then came to the plate and blasted a pitch into right center, scoring a run as she got to second. Jameyson then came to the plate and hit a single up the middle to score another run. Slider then came up and hit a double down the left field line. Neal then came up and battled to find her pitch, eventually finding space through the left side to score two runs. The Lions held a 4-0 lead after the first half inning.
 
Otto was also on a role early, striking out the side in the bottom of the first. Two of the three strikeouts were swinging strikeouts. The Lions led 4-0 after one.
 
Otto had two more strikeouts in the second inning and the Lions got another run across in the top of the third. Jameyson led off with a double, battling through more than 10 pitches to get her hit. She scored on a triple from Slider. The Lions could not get another rally going and led 5-0.
 
St. Mary's had a chance to score in the bottom of the third. The first batter walked and the second singled to center. Otto then settled in. She forced a fly out to left field and then struck out the next two batters, keeping the Rattlers off the board. The Lions led 5-0 after three complete.
 
The Lions added to their lead in the top of the fourth. Nunez had a single and a stolen base and Higgs also had a single to put runners in scoring position. Hebler then had a soft hit in the infield to score Nunez. Jameyson then had an RBI single through the left side to score Nunez. Hebler scored on a double from Slider. The Lions led 8-0 entering the bottom of the fourth.
 
The Rattlers got on the board in the bottom of the fourth. A double was followed by a triple to score a run. Otto had another strikeout in the inning and forced a foul out to end the inning and give up just one run.
 
The Lions had two runners reach in the top of the fifth but could not bring them around. St. Mary's then came up and had two leadoff singles in the bottom of the fifth. A sacrifice fly brought in another run for the Rattlers, bringing the score to 8-2. Otto had another strikeout in the inning to end the frame.
 
The Lions again had two hits in the sixth but could not get any more runs across. Otto had another strikeout in the bottom of the inning, bringing her total to 10. The Lions had two more hits in the seventh but could not pad the lead. It wouldn't matter as the Rattlers went three-up and three-down in the seventh, giving the Lions the upset win.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED (Game 2)
The Lions had two runners reach in the top of the first before a double play ended the inning. The Mavericks then took the field and got on the scoreboard. The first three batters reached base. After a force out at home, the next batter got a single to drive in a run. A walk and a single brought in two more runs and CMU took a 3-0 lead.
 
The Lions answered back with two runs in the top of the second. Slider led off with a single and then Avina hit a double to put two runners in scoring position. Neal singled into center, driving in a run. Muro then hit into a fielder's choice and another run crossed the plate.
 
The Lions held the Mavericks scoreless in the bottom of the second and then had their best inning of the game in the third. Hebler led off with a double and Jameyson drew a walk. Both runs crossed on a double from Avina. Muro then drove in a run to give the Lions a 5-3 lead going into the bottom of the third.
 
CMU went on to score five runs in the bottom of the third, helped by a couple Lion fielding errors. The Mavericks had seven hits in the inning to retake the lead.
 
The Lions scored another run in the fourth. Higgs reached base on a single and then stole second base. She was brought home on a double from Jameyson. CMU responded with two runs of their own in the fourth, taking a 10-6 lead.
 
After both teams went scoreless in the fifth inning without hits, the Lions had a chance to put up another run after Nunez had a single. However, the run could not come around and the Mavericks scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth to end the game in six innings.