LAS CRUCES, N.M. — UTSA moved to 4-0 and tied the best start in school history for the second consecutive season with wins over New Mexico State and Colorado State in the second day of the Hotel Encanto Invitational on Saturday.
The Roadrunners (4-0) opened the 2014 season, which was their first under head coach Michelle Cheatham, with a three-game sweep over Lamar before a win at then-No. 15 Texas and also started a season with four straight wins in 1996 and 1999.
Randee Crawford had a pair of doubles and totaled five RBIs on the day, while Jade Smith and Megan Low totaled three hits apiece. In addition, Vivian Tijerina and Kendall Burton each homered for the second consecutive day to help power the offense.
UTSA struck early before coming from behind in the opener.
Courtney Buchman coaxed a one-out walk before Low singled and Tijerina drew a free pass to load the bases. Crawford followed with a single up the middle to give the visitors a 2-0 cushion.
An error and wild pitch helped the Aggies (2-2) knot the score in the bottom of the first, but Buchman’s bases-loaded walk in the second reclaimed the upper-hand for the Roadrunners. An inning later it was Smith who again gave UTSA a two-run lead, 4-2, with a run-scoring single to left field.
However, New Mexico State got a solo homer from Emma Adams in the third and the home squad took its first lead, 5-4, with a two-run single off the bat of Corrin Green in the fourth.
The Aggies stretched the advantage to 6-4 in the bottom of the fifth when Malena Padilla was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
But UTSA did not quit and rallied to tie the score with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth.
Buchman started the frame with a walk before Low went the opposite way for a double. Tijerina picked up another walk to load the bases for Crawford, who once again came through, this time, with a two-run double to right.
The back-and-forth contest continued in the bottom of the panel, when Dallas McBride put the Aggies ahead 7-6 with a solo homer to left.
Down to their final three outs, UTSA wasted little time in taking the lead for good in the seventh.
Smith worked a walk before took McBride deep for her third home run in as many days.
Kelsi Ott, who entered the game in the fifth, worked a perfect bottom of the seventh to pick up her first win as a Roadrunner. The senior allowed three hits in 2.1 innings to go along with a pair of strikeouts, while Nicole Merrill struck out three in the first three innings before Chelsea Parker tossed 1.2 frames.
Colorado State (2-2) struck first in the nightcap with an RBI single from Jaelyn Manzanares in the first, but UTSA stormed back in the bottom of the inning with three runs of its own.
Buchman started the rally with a one-out single to center before Low walked and a wild pitch moved the pair to scoring position. Tijerina then tied the game with a single up middle and Crawford walked to load the bases. Tess Soefje followed and put the Roadrunners ahead 3-1 with a double to right field for her first extra-base hit of the campaign.
The Rams struck back with a pair of runs in the top of the second to tie the score, 3-3, only to watch UTSA reclaim the lead with two of its own in the third.
Tijerina’s second homer of the season put the Roadrunners ahead once again before Soefje reached on an error and Lindsie Knowles and Alyssa Cummings produced hits to load the bases. Smith then drove in a run with an infield hit on an 0-2 pitch to push the advantage to 5-3.
However, Colorado State jumped ahead 6-5 with a three-spot in the top of the fourth thanks to an error and two-run homer by Taylor Hutton.
But the Roadrunners would answer and take the lead for good in the bottom of the inning on Crawford’s RBI double down the right-field line and Soefje’s sacrifice fly.
Parker, who entered the game in the top of the fourth, held the Rams scoreless over the final 3.1 innings en route to her second win of the campaign
UTSA will close play at the Hotel Encanto Invitational on Sunday with a 10:30 a.m. (CT) contest against No. 18 Nebraska (3-1).