LAKE CHARLES, La. – The McNeese Cowgirls downed the East Texas A&M University softball team in two run-rule losses by scores of 16-0 and 14-3 on Friday at Cowgirl Diamond.
 
The Lions fall to 9-37 on the season and 5-17 in Southland Conference play, holding a two-game lead for eighth place with four games left in the season. McNeese is 32-17 on the season and 19-4 in SLC action.
 
Game One: MCNEESE 16, EAST TEXAS A&M 0 (Five Innings)
In the bottom of the first, Jada Munoz hit a three-run home run and Samantha Mundine followed with a solo home run before an out was recorded in the inning. The Cowgirls plated 10 runs in the first inning.
 
Munoz went 4 for 4 with seven RBIs in the game, while Sarah Allen had three RBIs and two hits for the Cowgirls. The Lions were held to just two hits in the game, coming from Stephanie Tapia (Yuma, Ariz.) and one from Hailey Montemayor (Lubbock – Cooper).
 
Julia Sanchez (The Kinkaid School) allowed four earned runs without an out recorded in the first inning to get the loss, while Kadence Williams tossed three shutout innings to get the win for the Cowgirls.
 
Game Two: MCNEESE 14, EAST TEXAS A&M 3 (Five Innings)
Tapia homered to center with an out in the first for the Lions, her ninth of the season. In the bottom of the inning, Kassidy Chance led off the inning with a double to left and scored on a foul out by Mundine, while Reese Reyna drove in Nylie Fontenot, who reached base via a walk, on a fielder's choice.
 
Emma Rodrigues (Little Elm – John Paul II) doubled to right center to lead off the inning and came around to score on a fielding error as Isabella Arzola (Chino, Calif.) reached on a bunt single. Arzola advanced a base on a sacrifice bunt from Charli Anger (Lubbock – Cooper) and scored on an RBI base hit from KK Cosek (Helendale, Calif.).
 
Sarah doubled to left center in the bottom of the second and came around to score on a triple to left center by Chance, who scored on a single to the shortstop from Munoz.
 
The Cowgirls scored nine in the third with Chance collecting two RBIs, and Rylie Bouvier hitting a two-run triple.
 
Chance collected three RBIs to lead the Cowgirls. Maddie Taylor allowed two earned runs in four innings, but collected the win for McNeese.
 
The Lions hit six hits in the game as Maddie Muller (Frisco – Centennial) collected the loss, allowing 10 earned runs in 2.1 innings.
 
UP NEXT
The series concludes at 1 p.m. on Saturday in Lake Charles.