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Seven Aggies record hit in series-opening win at Kennesaw State.
Source: NMSU Athletics
Story and Photo By Matthew Knope for NMSU: Courtesy
KENNESAW, GA. – NM State Softball picked up its fourth straight victory on Friday, taking down Kennesaw State by a score of 6-2. Three Aggies notched home runs across three straight innings as the visiting bats stayed hot. The home side was held to five hits, but failed to capitalize on eight free trips to first base, leaving 10 runners on base. Desirae Spearman belted a long ball for the second straight game as she also picked up her 11th win in the circle.
The triumph improved NM State to 26-24 overall and back over .500 in CUSA play at 13-12. The Owls fell to 2-23 in league contests and 11-40 on the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Desirae Spearman got the nod from Kathy Rodolph to pitch first on Friday night. After a quiet opening frame from the offense, the sophomore took to the circle. Kennesaw State struck first after a pair of walks and as many hits got the Owls on the board and up 1-0 heading into the second stanza.
With one away in the top half of the third inning, Spearman stepped up to the plate for her second at-bat of the series. The two-way star honed in on a 2-1 pitch, launching it back to dead center field and knotting the game at one run apiece with her 19th home run of 2025.
In inning four, Taylor Nicholson wasted no time doing damage, belting a leadoff double off the left-field wall. With one away, Kendal Lunar stepped up to the plate as Nicholson awaited in scoring position. After taking three straight balls to open the at-bat, the catcher saw her opportunity on a 3-1 count, launching it to the outfield tennis courts and handing the Aggies their first lead at 3-1.
To lead off in the fifth, Lauren Garcia got in on the action. The designated player battled through a long at-bat, working the count full. The Owl pitcher’s sixth offering was rifled for a four-bagger, marking the third straight inning with an Aggie home run. Garcia’s seventh long ball of 2025 put her squad in front 4-1 as the spectators stood up to stretch.
In the bottom of the inning, three walks loaded the bases for the Owls and Kathy Rodolph looked to center field to swap Faith Aragon into the circle. The sophomore got out of the jam with one of NM State’s six strikeouts on the day, queuing the top of the sixth on a swinging punchout.
For the second time on the night, an Aggie tallied a leadoff double to left-center on a 3-2 count as Tamara Carranza made a trip to second base with no outs. Kendal Lunar was hit by an offering after Carranza advanced to third on a wild pitch, placing runners at the corners before Karyme Amaya made her first appearance since the opening weekend of the season. The true freshman quickly recorded a stolen base, leaving first base open for Faith Aragon who took it on a walk. With the bases loaded, Spearman flied out to deep center, scoring Carranza. Skye Johnson was productive in her pinch-hitting appearance, picking up her own sacrifice fly to score Amaya and pull ahead 6-1 in what was the Rialto, Calif., native’s first run in Division I action.
A pair of Owls reached on a hit before the home side recorded its own sacrifice fly and cut the lead to four after six innings. Neither team threatened in the seventh as the Aggies smoothly secured their fourth straight victory and 13th of CUSA play by a score of 6-2.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
- The Aggies are now one win away from clinching a spot in next week’s CUSA Championship.
- NM State remained in fifth place in the CUSA standings at 13-12, surpassing Sam Houston (12-12), who did not play.
- The Aggies remained within striking distance of 13-10-1 WKU after the Hilltoppers defeated Jacksonville State at home.
- The victory was the team’s fourth in true road contests this season, jumping to 4-13.
- Friday’s win was the first in the all-time series between Kennesaw State and NM State, making the Aggies 1-0 against the Owls.
- After 25 days without a single such outing, the Aggie bats produced their fourth straight performance of five or more runs on Friday.
- NM State jumped to 7-10 on Fridays this year, including a 4-5 mark in CUSA play.
- Seven different Aggies notched a hit in the contest, but none posted more than one.
- After not recording a home run for the first 13 games in the month of April, Desirae Spearman has now done so in each of her past two outings.
- With a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning, Spearman tallied her 13th multi-RBI game of 2025.
- Kendal Lunar’s fourth-inning blast was her sixth of 2025 and her second in CUSA play. The two-run shot made Lunar the second Aggie with multiple RBIs on Friday, securing her third such game this season.
- Lauren Garcia belted the seventh home run of her campaign and the third in the past seven CUSA contests.
- In the sixth inning, Karyme Amaya made her first appearance of CUSA play. The true freshman catcher was a pinch runner for Kendal Lunar and had a career day.
- Two pitches after entering, the Rialto, Calif., native picked up her first stolen base of her career. Later in the inning, fellow California freshman Skye Johnson brought Amaya in to score her first collegiate run on a sacrifice fly.
FROM THE FIELD
Head Coach Kathy Rodolph, on the win: “We had to come in and get familiar with a new facility that’s built a little different in terms of spacing, so you have to get your bearings. I think it took us a little bit in the circle to get a feel for our pitches because the ball was moving more with the humidity. I feel like our hitters stayed within themselves and continued to put pressure throughout the whole game. I was very pleased that defensively we kept it clean.”
Head Coach Kathy Rodolph, on the team’s depth: “It certainly helped having Coach [Heifner] back, because she could manage who was going in and out, which allowed me to truly get back to focusing on the pitching. She absolutely kept looking for opportunities to let people in the dugout come into the game and show what they’ve been working on of late.”
Junior catcher Kendal Lunar, on the Aggies’ recent offensive success: “We were just adjusting quickly to their pitchers. They were jamming us a bit at first, but in my at-bats I wanted to just go for it. We have nothing to lose right now, so it’s all about seeing it and hitting it. It’s awesome to have Coach [Heifner] back. She’s been a great help, too, even if it’s just reminding us of simple things at the plate, I think it’s making a difference.”
UP NEXT
Tomorrow, the two sides will meet once more for the midway point of the weekend. First pitch is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. MT (1:00 p.m. local), after being moved up two hours due to anticipated inclement weather. The visitors eye securing their fifth series victory and a spot in the CUSA Championship while the Owls look to force a rubber match on Sunday for their Senior Day. 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).
