SAN ANGELO – The Angelo State softball team relied on clutch hitting from Maleya Burns and Paxton Scheurer in game two to force a split in their doubleheader with second-ranked UT Tyler at Mayer Field on Saturday. The Patriots took game one 7-0 before the Rambelles held on for a 3-2 victory.  

The Rambelles could not recover from a rough first inning in game one that saw the visitors push across five runs on three hits and an error; the Patriots also drew a pair of walks and were hit by a pitch.
The Patriots also plated singular runs in the fourth and sixth innings for the final 7-0 scoreline.

Ashlyn Lerma, Keilei Garcia, and Ashton Dirner were the only Rambelles to record a hit in the first game, with Lerma being the only Rambelle to reach base more than once, also drawing a walk.

The Patriots opened the scoring in game two, with a runner scoring on an error following a wild pitch on a third strike in the first inning.

A Bailey Martinez single with one out in the second inning set up Burns, who tripled to the right-center gap to drive in Martinez for the Rambelles' first run of the day. The triple from Burns was her first in her collegiate career.

Burns would propel the Rambelles into the lead in the fifth inning with her first home run of the season, a solo shot over the left-center fence.

Lerma would double before scoring on Paxton Scheurer's first triple of the season, which gave the Rambelles a 3-1 lead.

The Patriots only mustered three hits off Rambelle starter Genesis Armendariz, all coming from the bat of first baseman Avery Farr.

With the score 3-2 in the final frame, Armendariz walked the first two Patriot batters before getting a pair of groundouts, and with the bases loaded, Armendariz struck out All-American Tatum Goff for the exclamation point on the Rambelles' victory.

The Rambelles are 11-8 on the season and 3-5 in conference play. The rubber match between the Rambelles and the Patriots will take place tomorrow at 1 p.m.