No. 1/2 Softball remains undefeated at home after picking up two more wins

Friday, February 28

Austin, TX

4 PM CT

University of Texas

16-1

South Florida

14-5

South Florida

Texas

No. 1/2 Softball remains undefeated at home after picking up two more wins

02.28.2025 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Texas earns first victory over USF in Austin since 2000 and rallies late to beat Abilene Christian.

By: Chris Allen Brown

AUSTIN, Texas – Despite having the final two games of Friday's Longhorn Invitational, The University of Texas softball program kept fans in their seats throughout the duration of the Longhorns' 9-5 win against South Florida and 9-1 victory over Abilene Christian.

South Florida (14-5) attempted to spoil Texas' return to Red & Charline McCombs Field as the Bulls took a lead in the second (1-0) and third innings (5-1), respectively, before the Longhorns responded back with eight unanswered runs across both the bottom of the third and sixth.

The five-run bottom of the sixth for Texas was orchestrated the 9-1-2 portion of the Longhorn batting order as Kaydee Bennett, Ashton Maloney and Kayden Henry all reached based, before Mia Scott drew a five-pitch walk to score Bennett and tie the game at 5-5. Six pitches later, Reese Atwood pushed UT ahead with a two-run infield single that scored both Maloney and Henry. Scott and Atwood later came around the bases to touch home and give the home team a four-run lead for Citlaly Gutierrez (5-0) in the top of the seventh.

Later in the night, Abilene Christian (3-14) and Texas took a 1-1 game into the bottom of the fifth, before Katie Stewart broke the tie with a bases-clearing double just four batters into the frame. The Longhorns went on to add two more in the inning as Stewart scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Leighann Goode, before Shylien Brister touched home on a ground out off the bat of Kaydee Bennett.

Brister, who entered the game as a pinch runner for Joley Mitchell in the fifth, capped a three-run bottom of the sixth with a game-ending two-run double that scored Stewart and Atwood to give Texas its fifth run-rule victory over its last eight games.

FROM HEAD COACH MIKE WHITE

"Especially there in the first game, I liked how we always responded and found a way to tie it up. South Florida was able to stretch it out to four runs and you're always wondering how the team is going to find a way back. But we were pretty patient at the plate and was able to play some good defense. They're a well-coached team and we were able to hang in there and string some hits together and find a way to win."

FROM JUNIOR PITCHER CITLALY GUTIERREZ

"Yeah, it was definitely a rough start at first. I don't think I was as locked in as I would have liked to have been, but I settled down after the first batters and then took care of business the rest of the game."

GAME NOTES

Texas redshirt-junior Ashton Maloney was credited with her third career four-hit game when Longhorns' leadoff hitter was credited with four singles against South Florida to begin UT's two-game slate.
- Maloney's four-hit performance Friday night marked the first time she's had four hits in a single game since April 25, 2024 against Nicholls.
During the bottom of the fourth against South Florida, Mia Scott stole second base, marking the 52nd career stolen base for the Texas senior and tying her with Autumn Easters (1998-01) for 10th-place on the program's career stolen base list.
In the bottom of the third inning against USF, Texas junior Reese Atwood was hit with a 2-1 pitch, marking the 17th time she's been hit by a pitch throughout her collegiate career, which is tied for fourth on the program's career hit by pitch list.
By scoring on Katie Stewart groundout in the bottom of the sixth inning against South Florida, Mia Scott scored her 200th career run, joining Janae Jefferson and Taylor Hoagland as the only Longhorn softball student-athletes to reach the milestone.
As a result of collecting two hits against Abilene Christian, Mia Scott passed Lexy Bennett (2009-12) for third on the program's career hits list.
Cambria Salmon's six innings pitched against Abilene Christian marked a career high for the California native in her first season on the Forty Acres.

UP NEXT

Texas (17-1) will return to the diamond at Red & Charline McCombs Field on Saturday, March 1, when the Longhorns take on New Mexico State (10-9) at 1:30 p.m. CT during the second day of the Longhorn Invitational.

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