Wednesday, April 15
Abilene
6:30 p.m.
Abilene Christian
6-33
7
vs
9
North Texas
25-19
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Texas | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 2 |
| Abilene Christian | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 1 |
Photo by: Kaylee Kahn
Martinez, Lipardo Drive in 3 Runs Each in Near Comeback
4/15/2026 9:44:00 PM | Softball
The Abilene Christian softball team came within a few feet of an electric walkoff win on Wednesday night.
Down two with two outs in the bottom of the 7th inning, the WAC home run leader Ari Maxwell stepped to the plate representing the winning run. Maxwell got underneath the first pitch she saw, driving it deep to centerfield, but North Texas' Taylor Platt moved back and made a catch over her head to end the Wildcats' hopes of a thrilling comeback for a 9-7 Mean Green victory at Poly Wells Field.
ACU trailed 9-2 after five innings, but responded in the sixth when Audrey Lacina scored on an RBI groundout by Julianna Martinez. Emalee Romero, the next batter, doubled to left centerfield to plate Valerie Ornelas.
Wildcat pitcher Ella Beeman fired a 3-up, 3-down top of the 7th to give the offense a chance, trailing 9-4.
After Elizabeth Schaefer singled and Ciana Arguijo drew a pinch-hit walk, Lacina reached on a fielding error by UNT's shortstop to load the bases. Kyana Lipardo, a slapper from San Antonio East Central H.S., hit her first career triple to right center to knock in three runs and push ACU within two, 9-7, with no outs.
UNT made a pitching change, and Orneleas walked for the fourth time on the night. Martinez struck out looking and Romero popped out to the catcher, leading to Maxwell's final at-bat.
After a 90-minute lightning delay, North Texas struck first with five runs in the 1st inning -- all with two outs. Four straight singles and a double drove pitcher Leah Meyer out of the game. Makayla Valle then threw 2.2 innings with just one run allowed.
In the second inning, Abilene Christian responded with two runs. Jadyn Dawson singled and advanced on a wild pitch, setting up a two-RBI single by Martinez, who recorded a season-high total of 3 runs batted in.
In the 5th inning, North Texas extended its lead with a three-run homer off Alissa Snipes.
Despite the loss ACU has now pieced together three straight games with at least 7 runs. Lacina was a major contributor at the plate with a pair of doubles and scored twice.
UP NEXT
The Wildcats have a lengthy travel day on Thursday to Cedar City, Utah, where they'll play the Southern Utah Thunderbirds. A doubleheader on Friday begins at 2 p.m. CT, and the three-game series concludes Saturday at 1 p.m. CT. Each game is scheduled to be streamed on ESPN+.
Down two with two outs in the bottom of the 7th inning, the WAC home run leader Ari Maxwell stepped to the plate representing the winning run. Maxwell got underneath the first pitch she saw, driving it deep to centerfield, but North Texas' Taylor Platt moved back and made a catch over her head to end the Wildcats' hopes of a thrilling comeback for a 9-7 Mean Green victory at Poly Wells Field.
ACU trailed 9-2 after five innings, but responded in the sixth when Audrey Lacina scored on an RBI groundout by Julianna Martinez. Emalee Romero, the next batter, doubled to left centerfield to plate Valerie Ornelas.
Wildcat pitcher Ella Beeman fired a 3-up, 3-down top of the 7th to give the offense a chance, trailing 9-4.
After Elizabeth Schaefer singled and Ciana Arguijo drew a pinch-hit walk, Lacina reached on a fielding error by UNT's shortstop to load the bases. Kyana Lipardo, a slapper from San Antonio East Central H.S., hit her first career triple to right center to knock in three runs and push ACU within two, 9-7, with no outs.
UNT made a pitching change, and Orneleas walked for the fourth time on the night. Martinez struck out looking and Romero popped out to the catcher, leading to Maxwell's final at-bat.
After a 90-minute lightning delay, North Texas struck first with five runs in the 1st inning -- all with two outs. Four straight singles and a double drove pitcher Leah Meyer out of the game. Makayla Valle then threw 2.2 innings with just one run allowed.
In the second inning, Abilene Christian responded with two runs. Jadyn Dawson singled and advanced on a wild pitch, setting up a two-RBI single by Martinez, who recorded a season-high total of 3 runs batted in.
In the 5th inning, North Texas extended its lead with a three-run homer off Alissa Snipes.
Despite the loss ACU has now pieced together three straight games with at least 7 runs. Lacina was a major contributor at the plate with a pair of doubles and scored twice.
UP NEXT
The Wildcats have a lengthy travel day on Thursday to Cedar City, Utah, where they'll play the Southern Utah Thunderbirds. A doubleheader on Friday begins at 2 p.m. CT, and the three-game series concludes Saturday at 1 p.m. CT. Each game is scheduled to be streamed on ESPN+.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Britney Lewinski (13-9)
L: Meyer, Leah (3-10)
S: Kayleigh Smith (1)
Batting:
2B: Elizabeth Moffitt 1 ; Kaycee Slovak 1 ; Eva Daniels 1
HR: Eva Daniels 1
RBI: Ariah Mitchell 1 ; Kaycee Slovak 1 ; Riley McNemar 1 ; Eva Daniels 6
Base Running:
RUNS: Sienna Mayer 1 ; Elizabeth Moffitt 1 ; Bradi Harman 2 ; Kaycee Slovak 2 ; Riley McNemar 1 ; Eva Daniels 1 ; Taylor Platt 1
SB: Taylor Platt 1
Batting:
2B: Romero, Emalee 1 ; Lacina, Audrey 2
3B: Lipardo, Kyana 1
RBI: Romero, Emalee 1 ; Lipardo, Kyana 3 ; Martinez, Julianna 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Schaefer, Elizabeth 1 ; Dawson, Jadyn 1 ; Arguijo, Ciana 1 ; Lacina, Audrey 2 ; Lipardo, Kyana 1 ; Ornelas, Valerie 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
AB
5
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
UTL
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
INF
/ SoftballUTL
/ Softball
UTL
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
C
/ SoftballINF
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
RHP
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