By Marshall Mecham
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — The New Mexico State softball team (26-25, 16-11 Conference USA) earned the fifth seed in the CUSA Tournament and will take on No. 8 Sam Houston State (29-26, 13-14 CUSA) in a single-elimination game at 10 a.m. MT Wednesday, May 6, at Delaware Softball Diamond in Newark, Delaware.
Only eight of 12 teams make the tournament, meaning the Bearkats barley got in. However, they beat the Aggies two games to one in a home weekend series from Friday, March 13, to Sunday, March 15. After NMSU got off to a fast start in the series by winning the first contest 8-1, Sam Houston bounced back by winning 13-5 in six innings and 3-1 in the series finale.
If the Aggies defeat the Bearkats, they will face Delaware (30-22, 17-10 CUSA) later that day at 3 p.m. MT. NMSU beat the Blue Hens two games to one in its final home series from Friday, April 24, to Sunday, April 26.
Jacksonville State (42-13, 24-3 CUSA) will be the team to beat as they finished first in the conference standings and are the favorites to win it all.
If the Aggies want a chance to surprise some people, pitcher Faith Aragon must continue her heroics. The Carlsbad, New Mexico, native has an impressive 20-9 win-loss record.
Devin Elam has put together an astonishing senior campaign and will play a huge role in the postseason. She has hit 12 home runs and 35 RBIs to lead NMSU.
Regardless of how the Aggies perform in the tournament, they already defied many odds this season. After being picked to finish eighth in the preseason poll, NMSU managed to finish the regular season with a winning record and secure a top five seed.
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