Texas Southern softball swept a doubleheader over Huston-Tillotson on Tuesday.
TSU 10, Huston-Tillotson 2
Kylie Wilson finished 3-for-4 with three runs as TSU won the opener 10-2.
TSU wasted no time in setting the tone as they loaded the bases to open the game and scored the first run on Karisma Garcia's walk. A passed ball scored Wilson for a 2-0 lead, while Destiny Menchaca drew a bases-loaded walk to lead 3-0. DaNia Durr's sac fly drove in McQueen for the fourth run.
HTU answered with two runs in the second, but TSU quickly responded in the bottom frame as KateLynn Cooper opened the inning with a ground-rule double and eventually stole home for a 5-2 lead. Wilson upped the lead to 6-2 on Lanay Carr's RBI single.
Marisa Perla's RBI double drove in Mia Montemayor in the fourth for a 7-2 lead, followed by Kiersten Salinas' RBI single as the lead grew to 8-2. The game would end in the fifth as Wilson and Jordyn Talbert both scored because of a fielding error.
Wilson led the way with three hits while Cooper added two runs. Asia Peart earned the win on the mound after two innings of action.
TSU 8, Huston-Tillotson 2
TSU took control early and never looked back, closing out the series with an 8-2 win in game two.
After a scoreless first inning, the Tigers broke through in the second when Marisa Perla delivered a run-scoring single and then swiped second before watching teammate Jordyn Talbert dash home to put TSU ahead 2–0. The early offensive spark allowed Texas Southern to seize momentum.
In the third, TSU padded its lead when Karisma Garcia lifted a sacrifice fly to center to score a key run, making it a comfortable 3–0 advantage. The Tigers didn't let up — their bats came alive in a big way in the fifth inning. Garcia opened the frame with an RBI single, and Talbert followed with another clutch hit to bring in a run. Huston-Tillotson's defense then faltered, allowing an additional unearned run to push TSU's lead to 6–0.
Huston-Tillotson got on the board in the sixth thanks to a two-run single by Denae Hernandez, cutting into the deficit at 6–2. But Texas Southern answered quickly in their half of the sixth. Pinch-hitter Penelope Saenz drilled a double and later scored on a pair of fielding miscues by the Rams, extending the lead back to 8–2.
On the mound, TSU's pitching staff stifled Huston-Tillotson's lineup, scattering four hits and striking out several batters. Kylie Wilson earned the win in relief, finishing with two scoreless innings and a pair of strikeouts.
TSU is back in action next Tuesday versus the University of St. Thomas for a 2 p.m. start at Memorial Park.
