No. 9/13 Softball wins home opener, Gutierrez earns first career win

Wednesday, February 15

Austin, Texas

6 p.m.

University of Texas

3-1-1

Lamar

0-6

Lamar

Texas

Photo by: Texas Athletics

No. 9/13 Softball wins home opener, Gutierrez earns first career win

02.15.2023 | Softball

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In 3.1 innings of relief, true freshman Citlaly Gutierrez bounces back with dominating pitching performance

By: Chris Allen Brown

AUSTIN, TX – Prior to Texas' 8-2 win over Lamar Wednesday night, Citlaly Gutierrez had never appeared in a collegiate softball game at Red & Charline McCombs Field.

But it didn't take long for the true freshman from Stamford, Texas by way of Stamford High School to get acquainted with her surroundings after Texas softball head coach Mike White signaled for the right-hander with two outs in the top of the fourth inning.

With Texas (3-1-1) leading 4-2 and Lamar having runners on the corners with two away in the frame, Gutierrez immediately closed the door on any potential scoring plans the Cardinals were thinking about after she induced a groundball to first base for the inning's final out.

Gutierrez set down the next three Lamar batters before allowing a double — her lone hit allowed in 3.1 innings of work — to start the sixth inning. Even though the baserunner advanced to third with only one out, the freshman did not allow the Cardinal to score. An inning later, she capped her first career collegiate win with her second strikeout on the night.

FROM HEAD COACH MIKE WHITE

"The pitching, I thought, was much better (tonight). Sophia (Simpson) went out and gave us a solid 3.2 innings, before Citlaly (Gutierrez) was able to come in and do a good job. So, we had two pitchers who were able to get some more pitches and more experience out on the field today. Then, of course, Vanessa Quiroga coming in and catching and doing a good job for us. We have a few people who are banged up at the moment, so it's nice to be able to give those players a rest."

FROM FRESHMAN PITCHER CITLALY GUTIERREZ

"I'm feeling good. It feels good to be able to come back after the Northwestern game. I thought my dropball was really working well tonight. That and just positive self talk. I just kept telling myself one pitch at a time and to just breathe. There are some things I can improve on, obviously, but I can definitely take the momentum from tonight's performance and take it into this weekend and continue to keep working."

GAME NOTES

Following a redshirt season in 2022, Ashton Maloney was finally able to take the diamond at Red & Charline McCombs Field for a collegiate softball game for the first time. Throughout the seven innings against Lamar on Wednesday night, Maloney played all three outfield positions.
- Maloney started the game in left field and played there for three innings, before shifting to right field for the fourth inning and finally settled in centerfield for the game's final three frames.
Leighann Goode extended her hitting streak to five games when she led off the bottom of the first inning with a single to left field.
- Goode's five-game hitting streak to start her freshman year is now tied for the fifth-longest such streak in program history.
  - Goode is now tied Jordyn Whitake (Feb. 21-27, 2021) and Megan Willis (Feb. 6-13, 2004).
    - Janae Jefferson (Feb. 9-17, 2018) holds the program record with an eight-game hitting streak to begin a freshman year.
    - Courtney Day (Feb. 6-13, 2020) is the only active Longhorn softball student-athlete with a longer hitting streak to start a freshman year as the Pearland, Texas native had a six-game streak in 2020.
With the win, Texas has now won its last eight consecutive home openers dating back to the 2015 season.
Courtney Day's two-run home run in the bottom of the first inning was the 20th career home run for the junior.
Vanessa Quiroga drove in a career-high two RBI in two plate appearances on the evening despite entering the game in the top of the fourth inning.
17 different Texas softball student-athletes saw game action against Lamar on Wednesday night.
- Bella Dayton, Maddie Pomykalski, Estelle Czech and Mac Morgan were the only student-athletes to not appear in the game.

UP NEXT

Texas now turn its attention towards host duties as the Longhorns will prepare for this weekend's Texas Classic, featuring Loyola Chicago, Omaha and UIW.
- Texas will begin its slate of games at 3 PM CT on Friday, Feb. 17, when the Longhorns play Loyola Chicago.
  - Loyola Chicago have won two of its last three games en route to a 2-3 record, which included a contest against then-No. 23 Mississippi State.
  - Omaha has a 5-1 win over Iowa State on Friday, Feb. 10 to highlight its 5-0 start to the 2023 season.
  - UIW has a pair of wins over Eastern Illinois and one over Green Bay as the Cardinals travel up I-35 with a 3-2 overall record.

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