![LAS CRUCES, N.M. – On the night of an emotional return for Associate Head Coach Cat Heifner, Riley Carley delivered the final blow and lifted the Aggies to a walk-off comeback win in an instant classic. After missing the first 11 weeks of the season while battling cancer, Heifner was reunited with her home dugout, sparking the Aggie bats in a thrilling come-from-behind win. Riley Carley's seventh-inning single capped off a 5-4 triumph over Middle Tennessee and snapped a five-game skid. With the victory, NM State improved to 23-24 overall, securing a tie for seventh place in the CUSA standings at 10-12. The hosts are now knotted in the league poll alongside MTSU (10-12), who dipped to 23-25 overall. HOW IT HAPPENED A pitchers' duel told the story of the first two innings as neither side tallied a hit. In the circle for the home team, Desirae Spearman picked up four strikeouts against the first seven batters she faced before allowing the first punch of the evening. A single up the middle was followed up by an RBI double, scoring the series' first run. A second two-out hit doubled the visitors' lead, handing them a 2-0 advantage through two and a half innings. While Johnna Aragon's third-inning walk granted the Aggies their first baserunner, the home bats took until the fourth frame to register their first hit, doing so on a Lauren Garcia single up the middle. Devin Elam followed up later in the inning with a first-pitch knock to left-center field, but NM State failed to capitalize on the opportunity. While the home offense stayed quiet, a Blue Raider hit batter was advanced to third base on an ensuing double with one away in the fifth. After Kathy Rodolph executed a pitching change to Faith Aragon, a groundout scored the third visiting run of the night. Three straight hits in the sixth brought the fourth and final baserunner of the affair home for Jeff Breeden's bunch, sending Spearman up to lead off the bottom of the sixth as she stared down a 4-0 deficit. Riley Carley got things started with a one-out walk before Lauren Garcia's second single of the contest advanced a pinch-running Payton Nicholson to third base. A pinch-running Kenzie Nicholson entered for Garcia before stealing a base and joining her younger sister in scoring position. With a pair of siblings aboard, Taylor Nicholson got the nod as the pinch hitter, smoking a 2-0 pitch off the wall in right-center field. The blast breathed life into the Aggie offense as the oldest Nicholson scored both of her younger sisters on her first at-bat of a Senior Weekend in which Taylor is set to be recognized. Later, Johnna Aragon sent one over the head of the left fielder, scoring a re-entering Kristiana Watson to pull her side within one. While the damage stopped there in the sixth, the Aggies had established a brand new ball game with an inning to play. On just seven pitches, Faith Aragon not only sat down the Blue Raiders in order, but struck their final batter of the game out looking. The quick frame sent the home offense back to the batter's box still hot, as Kendal Lunar got the action kickstarted with a single to center field. On the first offering from a new Blue Raider pitcher, Faith Aragon laid down a perfectly-executed bunt, not only advancing a pinch-running Bella Clapp, but landing a hit in the process. In the ultimate showing of respect to Conference USA's most lethal hitter and reigning CUSA Player of the Year, Middle Tennessee's catcher stood up and signaled for an intentional walk with no outs and a pair of Aggies aboard. The visitors, leading by just one, chose to load the bases ahead of senior Riley Carley's at-bat. After taking strike one, the outfielder dribbled one just by the reaching glove of the pitcher and precisely through the middle of the infield. By the time the Blue Raider in center field sent the ball back home, Bella Clapp and Faith Aragon had both come around safely, giving the Aggies a dramatic, comeback walk-off win by a score of 5-4. NUMBERS OF NOTE NM State vaulted back into a tie for seventh place in the CUSA standings at 10-12, sitting alongside MTSU, now one game behind sixth-place FIU. The Crimson & White improved to 9-24 all-time in matchups with the Blue Raiders, holding a 7-12 record in Las Cruces. For the first time in April, NM State scored at least five runs in a single game. The squad last did so on March 29 in an 8-0 victory over Sam Houston. NM State jumped to 6-10 on Fridays this year, including a 3-5 mark in CUSA play. Entering the night, the Aggies were 1-17 when trailing after six innings, with the only prior victory from a 5-3 neutral comeback against Abilene Christian. The Feb. 28th contest also ended on a Riley Carley single that sealed an unconventional 6-5 win in Austin, Texas. Riley Carley tallied a walk-off hit on a monumental night for her coach, doing so in strikingly similar fashion to a Friday night game-winning home run in the Friday opener against FIU in 2024 that gave Kathy Rodolph her 600thwin with the program. Lauren Garcia was the lone Aggie to record a pair of hits, tallying her 12th mutli-hit outing of 2025. Kenzie Nicholson picked up her third stolen base of the season with a swipe in the sixth inning. Taylor Nicholson brought in both of her sisters with a clutch, hard-hit sixth-inning single. On the opening night of her senior weekend, the eldest Nicholson made the most of her pinch-hitting appearance and tallied her third and fourth RBI of 2025. Associate Head Coach Cat Heifner, on the win and her emotional return to the dugout: "It's all about being out here. It's being able to have an opportunity to get back out here after knowing them for so long. I've known Riley Carley since she was 14 years old. I've known Kristiana Watson since she was 12. For me, one of my big goals was to find a way to be back here for senior week. What tonight meant to me was everything. This is why you do it; to show them how to handle adversity and be there to champion them. This win was everything for them. They proved to themselves who they are tonight. They showed themselves how to be your own spark so you can help someone else catch fire. Some teams end their season before they ever figure that out, so I'm excited for them to be figuring it out now while they're in a spot that they can still kind of control their own destiny." Senior outfielder Riley Carley, on her walk-off clinching hit: "The respect that Desirae [Spearman] got to be intentionally walked was well deserved, absolutely. That said, I was thinking 'they don't realize who's behind her, then behind her, then behind her and so on.' Right before the inning, I knew it would play out to where I'd be the one at the plate in that moment. I didn't think [the hit] was going to go like that, but I loved that it was, because it really threw them off guard. I think that was the most perfect thing that could have happened. This group cares a lot. I know they care because Coach [Heifner] challenged us to want it more and stop playing with any selfishness. From that moment on, they did. We kind of all realized it's senior weekend. It's all or nothing. We have nothing to lose and I think we really responded to that." UP NEXT The two sides will meet again for the halfway point of the three-game bout. NM State will recognize its five graduating members with a postgame Senior Day Ceremony on the field. The home side looks for its fourth CUSA series win as MTSU hopes to establish a high-stakes Sunday rubber match. All the action this weekend will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via nmstatestats.com. For complete coverage of NM State Softball during the 2025 season, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of the Aggies – and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Softball), Twitter (@NMStateSoftball) and Instagram (@NMStateSoftball).](https://lascrucesdigest.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/resize-1-8.webp)
-and-
NM State erases four-run, sixth-inning deficit to topple Middle Tennessee.
Source: NMSU Athletics
By Matthew Knope
Photo By Emilio Garcia for NMSU: Courtesy
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – On the night of an emotional return for Associate Head Coach Cat Heifner, Riley Carley delivered the final blow and lifted the Aggies to a walk-off comeback win in an instant classic. After missing the first 11 weeks of the season while battling cancer, Heifner was reunited with her home dugout, sparking the Aggie bats in a thrilling come-from-behind win. Riley Carley’s seventh-inning single capped off a 5-4 triumph over Middle Tennessee and snapped a five-game skid.
With the victory, NM State improved to 23-24 overall, securing a tie for seventh place in the CUSA standings at 10-12. The hosts are now knotted in the league poll alongside MTSU (10-12), who dipped to 23-25 overall.
HOW IT HAPPENED
A pitchers’ duel told the story of the first two innings as neither side tallied a hit. In the circle for the home team, Desirae Spearman picked up four strikeouts against the first seven batters she faced before allowing the first punch of the evening. A single up the middle was followed up by an RBI double, scoring the series’ first run. A second two-out hit doubled the visitors’ lead, handing them a 2-0 advantage through two and a half innings.
While Johnna Aragon’s third-inning walk granted the Aggies their first baserunner, the home bats took until the fourth frame to register their first hit, doing so on a Lauren Garcia single up the middle. Devin Elam followed up later in the inning with a first-pitch knock to left-center field, but NM State failed to capitalize on the opportunity.
While the home offense stayed quiet, a Blue Raider hit batter was advanced to third base on an ensuing double with one away in the fifth. After Kathy Rodolph executed a pitching change to Faith Aragon, a groundout scored the third visiting run of the night. Three straight hits in the sixth brought the fourth and final baserunner of the affair home for Jeff Breeden’s bunch, sending Spearman up to lead off the bottom of the sixth as she stared down a 4-0 deficit.
Riley Carley got things started with a one-out walk before Lauren Garcia’s second single of the contest advanced a pinch-running Payton Nicholson to third base. A pinch-running Kenzie Nicholson entered for Garcia before stealing a base and joining her younger sister in scoring position. With a pair of siblings aboard, Taylor Nicholson got the nod as the pinch hitter, smoking a 2-0 pitch off the wall in right-center field. The blast breathed life into the Aggie offense as the oldest Nicholson scored both of her younger sisters on her first at-bat of a Senior Weekend in which Taylor is set to be recognized.
Later, Johnna Aragon sent one over the head of the left fielder, scoring a re-entering Kristiana Watson to pull her side within one. While the damage stopped there in the sixth, the Aggies had established a brand new ball game with an inning to play.
On just seven pitches, Faith Aragon not only sat down the Blue Raiders in order, but struck their final batter of the game out looking. The quick frame sent the home offense back to the batter’s box still hot, as Kendal Lunar got the action kickstarted with a single to center field. On the first offering from a new Blue Raider pitcher, Faith Aragon laid down a perfectly-executed bunt, not only advancing a pinch-running Bella Clapp, but landing a hit in the process.
In the ultimate showing of respect to Conference USA’s most lethal hitter and reigning CUSA Player of the Year, Middle Tennessee’s catcher stood up and signaled for an intentional walk with no outs and a pair of Aggies aboard. The visitors, leading by just one, chose to load the bases ahead of senior Riley Carley’s at-bat. After taking strike one, the outfielder dribbled one just by the reaching glove of the pitcher and precisely through the middle of the infield. By the time the Blue Raider in center field sent the ball back home, Bella Clapp and Faith Aragon had both come around safely, giving the Aggies a dramatic, comeback walk-off win by a score of 5-4.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
- NM State vaulted back into a tie for seventh place in the CUSA standings at 10-12, sitting alongside MTSU, now one game behind sixth-place FIU.
- The Crimson & White improved to 9-24 all-time in matchups with the Blue Raiders, holding a 7-12 record in Las Cruces.
- For the first time in April, NM State scored at least five runs in a single game. The squad last did so on March 29 in an 8-0 victory over Sam Houston.
- NM State jumped to 6-10 on Fridays this year, including a 3-5 mark in CUSA play.
- Entering the night, the Aggies were 1-17 when trailing after six innings, with the only prior victory from a 5-3 neutral comeback against Abilene Christian.
- The Feb. 28th contest also ended on a Riley Carley single that sealed an unconventional 6-5 win in Austin, Texas.
- Riley Carley tallied a walk-off hit on a monumental night for her coach, doing so in strikingly similar fashion to a Friday night game-winning home run in the Friday opener against FIU in 2024 that gave Kathy Rodolph her 600thwin with the program.
- Lauren Garcia was the lone Aggie to record a pair of hits, tallying her 12th mutli-hit outing of 2025.
- Kenzie Nicholson picked up her third stolen base of the season with a swipe in the sixth inning.
- Taylor Nicholson brought in both of her sisters with a clutch, hard-hit sixth-inning single. On the opening night of her senior weekend, the eldest Nicholson made the most of her pinch-hitting appearance and tallied her third and fourth RBI of 2025.
Associate Head Coach Cat Heifner, on the win and her emotional return to the dugout: “It’s all about being out here. It’s being able to have an opportunity to get back out here after knowing them for so long. I’ve known Riley Carley since she was 14 years old. I’ve known Kristiana Watson since she was 12. For me, one of my big goals was to find a way to be back here for senior week. What tonight meant to me was everything. This is why you do it; to show them how to handle adversity and be there to champion them.
This win was everything for them. They proved to themselves who they are tonight. They showed themselves how to be your own spark so you can help someone else catch fire. Some teams end their season before they ever figure that out, so I’m excited for them to be figuring it out now while they’re in a spot that they can still kind of control their own destiny.”
Senior outfielder Riley Carley, on her walk-off clinching hit: “The respect that Desirae [Spearman] got to be intentionally walked was well deserved, absolutely. That said, I was thinking ‘they don’t realize who’s behind her, then behind her, then behind her and so on.’ Right before the inning, I knew it would play out to where I’d be the one at the plate in that moment. I didn’t think [the hit] was going to go like that, but I loved that it was, because it really threw them off guard. I think that was the most perfect thing that could have happened.
This group cares a lot. I know they care because Coach [Heifner] challenged us to want it more and stop playing with any selfishness. From that moment on, they did. We kind of all realized it’s senior weekend. It’s all or nothing. We have nothing to lose and I think we really responded to that.”
UP NEXT
The two sides will meet again for the halfway point of the three-game bout. NM State will recognize its five graduating members with a postgame Senior Day Ceremony on the field. The home side looks for its fourth CUSA series win as MTSU hopes to establish a high-stakes Sunday rubber match. All the action this weekend will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via nmstatestats.com.
For complete coverage of NM State Softball during the 2025 season, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of the Aggies – and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Softball), Twitter (@NMStateSoftball) and Instagram (@NMStateSoftball).
