LAREDO, Texas – Texas A&M International softball earned its first conference sweep of the 2022 season, defeating Western New Mexico 8-3 and 5-3 in doubleheader action.
 
Game 1: Texas A&M International 8 Western New Mexico 3
 
Western New Mexico jumped ahead right away with a solo home run in the top of the first to lead 1-0.
 
The Dustdevils then exploded in the bottom of the second inning, to take a 7-1 lead.
 
Sophomore Victoria Gonzalez tied the game 1-1 with a solo home run to open the scoring. Freshman Alex Hernandez then singled in a pair to give TAMIU a 3-1 lead, five batters later. Junior Briana Arredondo, the ninth batter of the inning, gave the Dustdevils a 7-1 lead off a grand slam.
 
Freshman Sara Papizan concluded the scoring in the bottom of the fifth for TAMIU with an RBI single.
 
The Mustangs added two off a two-run home run in the top of the seventh to conclude the game's scoring.
 
Junior Darrian Smith got the start in the circle and allowed just one run, three hits, two walks and six strikeouts over four innings.
 
Papizan pitched two scoreless innings of relief, allowing two hits and striking out three, while Gonzalez allowed two runs, two hits, one walk and struck out one in the seventh inning.
 
Offensively, TAMIU had nine hits with nine different batters collecting a single hit.

Game 2: Texas A&M International 5 Western New Mexico 3
 
Game two saw the Dustdevils jump ahead early with three runs in the bottom of the first to lead 3-0.
 
In the inning, graduate student Victoria Maldonado and Arredondo had RBI singles, while Gonzalez notched an RBI double.
 
TAMIU added to its lead in the bottom of the fifth, when Papizan drove in a run on an RBI double to make it 4-0.
 
Western New Mexico trimmed the deficit to 4-3 with a two-run home run and RBI double in the top of the sixth, but the Dustdevils responded in the bottom of the inning to add an insurance run to make it 5-3 on an RBI single by Hernandez.
 
Freshman Carla Arellano picked up the win, allowing three runs, six hits, one walk and fanned three over 5.2 innings.
 
Papizan closed the door allowing three hits, one walk and one strikeout in 1.2 innings of work.
 
TAMIU had just nine hits again in the contest, with Arredondo going 3-for-3, Gonzalez hitting 2-for-3, Hernandez with a 2-for-4 showing.
 
The Dustdevils conclude its matchup with Western New Mexico tomorrow at 11 a.m. for a non-conference matchup.