Oklahoma Panhandle State University

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 | Box Score 3 | Box Score 4 Hobbs, N.M.—The Panhandle State Softball team swept a four-game series this weekend against the University of the Southwest. The Aggies claimed victory by scores of 7-5, 13-3, 3-1 and 2-0 over the two-day stint.

Back in the circle for her redshirt sophomore season, pitcher Julia Ibarra got the start in game one and pitched a complete seven innings against the Mustangs. Ibarra pulled things together after allowing five runs in the first two innings; she finished strong by holding the Mustangs to three hits and zero runs throughout the remainder of the game.

Down 5-0 going into the third inning, the Aggies had two runners walked and one reach on error to help bring in their first two runs of the day; a single by Salina Galindo put the second scoring run in place. An exciting third inning added three runs for Panhandle as freshman Chrislyn Dovers opened with a single and scored after two errors loaded the bases. Faith Guzman then stepped up with two-run homer to center field to tie the ball game at 5-5. A leadoff triple by Brooklyne Bolton would add another run for the Aggies in the fifth, giving them a one-run lead going into the final two innings. Panhandle's defense held strong and an RBI double by big hitter Darcie Wilson clinched the game one victory for the Aggies.

Saturday's game two saw the Mustangs strike first again, claiming a one-run lead on a sloppy second inning for Panhandle; an error and a wild pitch led to the score for the home team. But, the Aggies bounced back once again and hammered in three runs at the top of the third. Danielle Villarreal led off with a single and took second on a single bunt by Galindo; Villarreal proceeded to steal third and Galindo second during the pitch to Bolton who walked to base. Villarreal stole home for the first run of the inning. A sac fly by Sarah Gregori and an RBI single by Anyssa Barbosa led the Aggies to a two-run lead (3-1) going into the bottom of the inning. USW got by with a two-run double in the bottom of the third to tie things up, but the Aggies would not allow them to cross home for the rest of the game. Freshman pitcher Emily Worley earned her first collegiate win, putting in a complete six innings of work for the Panhandle.

Panhandle put in two big innings in the fifth and sixth, scoring three runs on three RBI singles in the fifth and a whopping seven runs in the sixth inning. The Mustangs gave up four of the seven runs on doubles by Wilson and Guzman (2 RBI) and a two-run single by Ashby Williams (2 RBI); two runs came through off walked batters and Villarreal took the lead on a double-steal that had Brissa Rivera cross home on a stolen base. An error and a hit batter added to USW's sixth inning struggles.

Ibarra opened for the Aggies in game three of the series on Sunday and held the Mustangs scoreless until the bottom of the sixth inning. Panhandle opened up scoring in the third inning again with one run scored by Ibarra. Ibarra reached base on an infield error and made it to third on a long single by Guzman; she scored on an error during the next at bat. A 1-0 game through the fourth, Panhandle put up another run in the top of the fifth when two errors and a bunt by Ibarra helped bring Gregori home. Each team scored a run in the sixth with Wilson knocking a home run to center field for the Aggies' final run of the game.

Game four brought Worley back to the rubber. Worley went another solid six innings and claimed her second victory as an Aggie. Ibarra stepped into the circle in the bottom of the seventh with two runners on base, earning her first save of the season. With zero runs scoring for the Mustangs, the Aggies also found the hits hard to come by, as USW's defense allowed only four hits and zero runs through the fourth inning. Krissy Sardelich smacked a double with two runners on base to score the first run of the game in the top of the fifth. Another double by Darcie Wilson in the sixth gave the Aggies the last run of the day for the win.

For the weekend Ibarra put in 15 innings of work and threw five strikeouts in the series; she finished with 15 hits and six runs (three earned). Worley looks to bring great depth to the Aggie bullpen, serving up nine strikes in her 12 innings in the circle; she gave up ten hits and three runs (two earned) on her watch. The Aggies totaled 34 hits and 19 RBI in the series led by Faith Guzman and Darcie Wilson; Guzman went 5-11 at the plate, with four RBI and Wilson was 4-10 with three RBI. Panhandle had the edge on the field as USW committed 12 errors, compared to the Aggies' five.

Panhandle State Softball will resume road play this week with a doubleheader in Wichita Falls, Texas on Wednesday; the Aggies will meet with Midwestern State for two games starting at 4 p.m. The team will then compete in the North Texas Softball Bash Feb. 10-12 in Grand Prairie where they will play two games each day. Live stats are available for select games; the link is located online at opsuaggies.com on the Softball schedule page.