The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
39-6
Nicholls
25-22
No. 1/1 Softball sets tone early, shines en route to 20th home victory
04.25.2024 | Softball
Seven first-inning runs set up Texas for latest win of the season
AUSTIN, Texas – Every time a softball team takes the diamond, it wants to set the tone early. The University of Texas accomplished just that in its 10-3 win against Nicholls on Thursday night, when the Longhorns plated seven first inning runs on eight base hits.
After a 10-pitch top of the first by Estelle Czech (8-3) that lasted fewer than five minutes, Ashton Maloney singled a 1-2 pitch back up the middle to start the bottom of the first and get the ball rolling. And it didn't stop for nearly 30 minutes.
Mia Scott sacrificed herself for the inning's first out and advanced Maloney to second. From there, Viviana Martinez and Katie Stewart produced run-scoring plate appearances with Stewart, a freshman on the same day the NFCA announced the top 25 student-athletes for its top Freshman of the Year honor, blasted a 1-0 pitch 214 feet for a three-run home run.
Now with the bases empty, Alyssa Washington started the cycle, again, by sending a 2-2 pitch to center field for a single. A Kayden Henry bunt followed a pop up off the bat of Katie Cimusz, before Bella Dayton was credited with a two-run triple five pitches later. Maloney, who started the inning, brought home the Horns' seventh run of the frame with her second hit of the inning — a single up the middle — to score Dayton.
Texas added single runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings on run-scoring plate appearances by Martinez, Maloney and Stewart.
FROM HEAD COACH MIKE WHITE
"I thought it was a good performance by our offense to come out and score seven runs in the first inning. I thought we were going to be in for a short night, but we started to make some lapses there in the third and fourth innings. Estelle (Czech) was efficient with 26 pitches through three innings, so she did really good there. There were also some really outstanding catches in the outfield that I was really pleased with. There were some good base running moments, too, but we'll go back and watch film to see what more we need to work on for this weekend."
FROM SENIOR PITCHER ESTELLE CZECH
"(Tonight) really meant a lot. I've played with these girls for a really long time and have been able to connect with them on a very personnel level, so to be able to hear all the kind words come from them throughout tonight's game really meant a lot to me. I really enjoyed watching that (mid-game) video. It really touched my heart."
GAME NOTES
- With her four-hit performance throughout Thursday night's game, Texas redshirt sophomore Ashton Maloney has now been credited with two four-hit contests this season, which is 40.0 percent (2 of 5) of the team's total four-hit outings in 2024.
- Courtesy of her three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning, Texas freshman Katie Stewart not only extended her on-base streak to a team-high 10 consecutive games but also pushed her hitting streak to three straight games, which is tied with Ashton Maloney and Reese Atwood for the longest active hitting streak by a Longhorn softball student-athlete.
- With her infield single in the bottom of the first inning, Texas redshirt sophomore Ashton Maloney surpassed the 100-career hit plateau, joining Mia Scott (201), Alyssa Washington (126), Viviana Martinez (108), Bella Dayton (107) and Reese Atwood (106) as the only active Longhorn softball student-athletes to be credited with 100-or-more hits during their collegiate softball careers on the Forty Acres.
UP NEXT
- Texas (39-6, 17-4) will return to Big 12 Conference play in less than 24 minutes when the Longhorns open a three-game conference series against Iowa State (18-25, 5-13) at Red & Charline McCombs Field with first pitch slated for 6 p.m. CT on Friday, April 26.
FOLLOW US
- For the latest information on the team, follow @TexasSoftball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. General athletic news can also be found at @TexasLonghorns on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Czech, Estelle (8-3)
L: Paden, Averi (7-4)
S: Simpson, Sophia (2)
Batting:
2B: Heflin, Reagan 1 ; Andersen, Abby 1
RBI: Heflin, Reagan 1 ; Poche', Alexa 1
SF: Heflin, Reagan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Heflin, Reagan 1 ; Poche', Alexa 1 ; Gwiazda, Samantha 1
Batting:
2B: Martinez, Viviana 2 ; Stewart, Katie 1 ; Henry, Kayden 1
3B: Dayton, Bella 1
HR: Stewart, Katie 1
RBI: Maloney, Ashton 2 ; Martinez, Viviana 2 ; Stewart, Katie 4 ; Dayton, Bella 2
SH: Scott, Mia 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Maloney, Ashton 2 ; Martinez, Viviana 1 ; Atwood, Reese 1 ; Wallace, Adayah 1 ; Stewart, Katie 1 ; Washington, Alyssa 2 ; Henry, Kayden 1 ; Dayton, Bella 1
SB: Wallace, Adayah 1
CS: Martinez, Viviana 1
HBP: Atwood, Reese 1 ; Washington, Alyssa 1
