SAN ANTONIO — Randee Crawford hit three home runs and drove in four runs as UTSA opened Conference USA play with a doubleheader sweep of North Texas by scores of 3-2 and 8-6 on Saturday afternoon at Roadrunner Field.
Kaley Pyles went 3-for-6 with a double, homer and three RBIs on the day to help lead the Roadrunners (8-16, 2-0 C-USA), while Chelsea Parker picked up a win and allowed just three earned runs in 8.1 innings pitched.
Throughout both games, UTSA was at its best with two outs as the squad tallied eight of its 11 runs with multiple outs in the inning.
UTSA used three solo homers, including two from Crawford, in the opener to push past the Mean Green (13-8, 0-2 C-USA) in extra innings.
Pyles got the Roadrunners on the board in the bottom of the first with a two-out, solo homer to center. The blast was her second of the campaign and Crawford would register her first round-tripper of the day two innings later to double the advantage to 2-0.
However, Rhylie Makawe knotted the score with a two-run shot of her own in the top of the fourth and neither squad could break through for a run over the final three frames to send the contest to extra-innings.
Reliever Lizzy Fox (3-6) worked a scoreless top of the eighth and earned the victory in the circle after Crawford sent a blast over the wall in left-center in the bottom of the panel to walk off with the 3-2 win.
In the second game of the day, UTSA used a five-run sixth inning to break a 3-3 tie and then held off a late charge by North Texas for an 8-6 triumph.
Like it did in the first game, UTSA jumped ahead with a run in the bottom of the first. This time, it was Chelsea Thomas’ two-out double to the gap in right-center field that plated Pyles for the early cushion.
Danielle Gregory tied the score with a solo homer in the top of the second, but Crawford put the Roadrunners ahead with her third blast of the day, a two-run homer to left after Kendall Burton started the third with a single up the middle.
North Texas chipped away at the 3-1 deficit with runs in the fourth and fifth to tie the score, 3-3.
With two outs in the bottom of the sixth, the Roadrunners strung together five hits and took a commanding 8-3 lead with five runs.
Jade Smith broke the tie with her single to left that scored pinch-runner Lindsie Knowles. Burton then lined a two-run hit to center field to make it 6-3 and Pyles added two more runs with a double to left-center field.
The insurance runs became crucial in the top of the seventh, when Karly Williams started the inning with a solo homer and Bryana Wade followed with a two-out, two-run homer to close the gap to 8-6.
Nicole Merrill entered the circle to get the final out, and the junior got pinch-hitter Lauren Miller to strike out to preserve the victory and register her first save of the season.
UTSA will look for the series sweep of North Texas at 1 p.m. on Sunday.