Texas A&M
Utah State
No. 21 Softball Handles Utah State and Wright State
Mar 12, 2010 | Softball
March 12, 2010
Utah State Box Score | Wright State Box Score | Photo Gallery 
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Junior Rhi Kliesing and senior Alex Reynolds hit .667 to lead the No. 21 Texas A&M softball team to a pair of victories on Friday evening at the Aggie Invitational. A&M (19-6) routed Utah State, 10-4, before blanking Wright State, 5-0, at the Aggie Softball Complex.
Kliesing and Reynolds set new career highs by going 5-for-5 and 4-for-4, respectively, in the Aggies' opening game of the tournament. Both players posted three RBI's on the day.
In the circle, sophomore pitcher Rebecca Arbino threw her third straight three-hit shutout in the win over Wright State. From Clovis, Calif., Arbino did not allow a walk or an extra-base hit and struck out eight to tally her for her fourth blank of the season.
In relief against Utah State, freshman pitcher Melissa Dumezich improved to 4-0 with a six-strikeout, two-hit performance.
In the first inning of the day, a two-out rally gave the Aggies their first run against USU. Freshman Meagan May drew a walk and Kliesing singled before Reynolds hit a soft liner up the middle to score May from second and get A&M out to a 1-0 lead.
In the bottom half of the inning, Utah State put up a four-spot with an RBI single from Nicole Tindall followed by a three-run home run from Kelley Kaneshiro.
Texas A&M answered in the top of the second, however, when freshman Macie Morrow scored one with a sacrifice fly to left and Kliesing evened the score with a two-out RBI single through the right side.
The Aggies regained the lead in the fourth off of a two-out, solo home run by Kliesing. Her fifth shot of the year was into a strong wind and put A&M up 5-4.
"Rhi was so impressive," commented A&M head coach Jo Evans. "The one she hit out opposite field, she hit so hard and the wind almost kept it in. It was really nice to see her not take her pitching out with her at the plate; she just went out and did what she could to help us win."
A&M added a pair of runs in the sixth with a two-run double to left center by Reynolds. The Tomball, Texas, native plated pinch runner Andrea Tovar and Kliesing with her second two-bagger of the day.
In the top of the seventh, the Aggies tacked on three more with three RBI doubles from Orsak, Morrow and May.
Dumezich (4-0) relieved Kliesing in the circle in the second and matched her career high with six K's in six innings of work for the win. USU starting pitcher, Kate Greenough (3-4), also threw six innings and gave up seven runs on 11 hits in the loss.
"Mel went out there in the second inning and just took over the game," Evans said. "It's fun to watch her pitch when she gets in a grove like that."
In the nightcap against Wright State, the game was scoreless until the third inning. The Aggies patiently loaded the bases on three walks that frame. In the next at bat, Dumezich drew the fourth base on balls and picked up an RBI as May crossed the plate and got the Aggies on the scoreboard first, 1-0.
Texas A&M did not record its first single of the game until the fifth, but that did not seem to matter as the team rallied off five hits in the inning. Kliesing started the hitting with a line drive to center and then the Aggies scored four runs with two outs. Dumezich's soft liner to left plated Kliesing before pinch hitter, Kara Rau, stepped to the plate and cracked a bases-clearing doubled to left to give A&M a 5-0 advantage.
Arbino's shutout in the circle increased her record to 9-3, while Sharon Palma fell to 4-6 after two and two-thirds innings pitched.
"Becca looked really good she was on top of her game again tonight," said Evans. "She had really good presence out there and played good defense for us. She was very comfortable. She wants the ball and you can see that."
Offensively, Orsak had three hits and scored three runs, while Dumezich went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and Shannon added a pair of hits and two runs.
The Aggie Invitational continues tomorrow and Texas A&M returns to the diamond at 3 p.m. against North Dakota State. The Ags follow with a contest against Utah State at 5:15 p.m.
