TAMU-T softball ranks No. 4 in NAIA poll

TEXARKANA, Texas — It’s hard to ignore just how well Texas A&M-Texarkana has started the 2023 softball season. With a program-best 15-0 start that’s included wins over three schools ranked in the NAIA Preseason Top 25 poll, not even the coaches around the country could ignore it either.

The Eagles earned the highest national ranking in program history Wednesday, climbing all the way to No. 4 in the first edition of the regular season NAIA Softball Coaches Poll. It’s the program’s first ranking since late last season, when they came in at No. 12 prior to the postseason.

Mobile (Alabama) took the top spot, Indiana Wesleyan is second and Freed-Hardeman (Tennessee) is third. Oregon Tech rounds out the Top 5 in the fifth spot. Fellow conference foe Our Lady of the Lake is seventh.

The Eagles have won this season over three teams who made the latest poll, including No. 10 Baker (Kansas), No. 16 Southeastern (Florida), and No. 24 Campbellsville (Kentucky). They also beat Columbia (Missouri), who was ranked in the preseason poll, but fell out of the first regular season list.

Of the 19 first-place votes, Mobile received 16, sixthranked Oklahoma City – the top team in the preseason poll – received two, and the Eagles received one.

Basketball

NASHVILLE GOES FOR TITLE

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — The Nashville Scrappers will be shooting for their second straight Class 4A girls state basketball crown today when they face Farmington in a rematch of last year’s finals.

Nashville edged Farmington, 42-41, on a last-second shot.

The two teams have dominated their competition this season. Nashville is 29-3 while Farmington is 35-1. Two powerhouses colliding.

“I got a feeling it’s going to be a real battle down to the end,” said Scrapper coach Paul Dean. “We have a chance to go back-to-back and that’s what our goal has been all

season long.”

The title match is set for noon today in the Hot Springs Convention Center.

Baseball

TIGERS IN LAKESIDE

TOURNAMENT

SIBLEY, La. — Texas High, fresh off a 4-2 victory over Benton, Louisiana, on Tuesday, will compete in another Louisiana tournament starting today.

The Tigers will compete in the Bistineau Classic at Lakeside High School outside Minden, Louisiana.

Texas High will play C.E. Byrd out of Shreveport, Louisiana, at 5:30 p.m. today and host Lakeside at 7:30 p.m. Both games will be on Lakeside’s diamond.

On Friday, Texas High will face Minden on Minden’s Field.

In the 4-2 win over Benton, Texas High scored three runs in the fourth inning and

Tiger pitchers made that stand up.

The Tigers were led offensively by Brenden Allred with two hits. Tanner Ross, Allen Cartwright, Dalton Bristow and Dalton Raley also had hits for Texas High. Bristow drove in a run.

Worth McMillen pitched 5 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on eight hits. He struck out two and walked two.

Jacob High pitched 1 2/3 innings in relief to pick up the save. He didn’t allow any runs or hits and fanned two.