Griz lose twice at Troy Cox Classic

Saturday, February 16

Las Cruces, N.M .

9:00 AM

Montana

1-7

Texas State

4-3

Texas State

Montana

2/16/2019 8:38:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Montana Sports Information

The Montana softball team lost a pair of games on Saturday as New Mexico State's Troy Cox Classic continued in Las Cruces.

The Grizzlies fell behind 7-0 and never caught up in an 11-3 loss to Texas State, then lost 6-3 to the host Aggies on a walk-off three-run home run. Both teams played in the NCAA tournament last spring.

Montana (1-8) committed eight errors in the two games, which led to six unearned runs.

"Errors ate us alive today," said coach Melanie Meuchel. "It's hindering our ability to click right now on all cylinders. At times it's great, at others it kind of snowballs on us."

Texas State's leadoff batter in Saturday's opener homered down the leftfield line, and the Bobcats would lead throughout. They scored five times in the second off Griz starter Colleen Driscoll.

"They do some good things at the plate, but we let the game play us instead of going and getting the ball and making plays," said Meuchel.

"We pretty much had three consecutive plays in the second inning that we did not make in the infield and that led to five runs. That was a big inning because of those plays."

Montana scored once in the third, on an RBI double by Cami Sellers, and two more in the fifth, on back-to-back home runs by Lexi Knauss and Sellers.

Tristin Achenbach pitched the final four innings in relief.

After falling behind New Mexico State 2-0 in its second game of the day, Montana got on the scoreboard in the fourth, pulling within 2-1 on a Brooklyn Weisgram infield single.

It could have been a big inning. Weisgram's hit left the bases loaded with nobody out, but the next two batters struck out, and the Aggies got out of the jam on a fielder's choice.

New Mexico State went up 3-1 with a run in the sixth and had Montana down to its final strike in the top of the seventh.

Maddy Stensby kept the Grizzlies alive with a two-out single up the middle, and Maygen McGrath tied it with her first collegiate home run.

"I think it will add to her confidence," said Meuchel, of her freshman shortstop who is now batting a team-best .385. "It should give confidence to everyone that they can do anything at any given time."

The buzz wouldn't last long. The Aggies won it in the bottom of the seventh off Montana starter Michaela Hood, who threw 149 pitches and struck out eight. Her final pitch landed over the fence in left field.

"They're a heck of a hitting team with a potent offense. They're the best team here," said Meuchel.

"I was really proud of our effort in the second game. From the first pitch I thought we looked like a good, strong team on our side and like we were competitive. We gave away a few runs, but we did a lot of things right."

Knauss and Sellers both had two-hit games in the opener. McGrath had two hits against New Mexico State, as did Weisgram and Anne Mari Petrino, who broke out of season-opening 0-for-19 slump with an infield single in the second. She singled again in the sixth.

Knauss went hitless against the Aggies, ending her hitting streak at eight games. Sellers had a seven-game hitting streak come to an end against NMSU.

Montana will try to snap an eight-game losing streak when it faces Texas State on Sunday at 9 a.m. in the Grizzlies' final game of the tournament.