The Wildcats lost their second matchup of the season on Thursday to No. 2 Texas Tech 9-1 in five innings to fall to 4-28 for the season and remain 1-2 in conference play.

In the first matchup, the Red Raiders held the Wildcats scoreless while scoring 24 runs and ending the game early in the fifth inning by run rule.

In Thursday’s game, ACU held them to only two runs through the first two innings before giving up seven in the third inning. Offensively, ACU was unable to produce until the fourth inning when Ari Maxwell, sophomore outfielder from Edmond, Oklahoma, scored the Wildcats’ only run of the day on a sacrifice fly to left field.

Maxwell was one of three batters to get a hit against Red Raider pitcher Kaitlyn Terry, who has a 1.86 ERA and is 14-0 on the season. The other two were Emalee Romero, senior infielder from Eastvale, California, and Audrey Lacina, redshirt sophomore from Bentonville, Arkansas.

“Ari’s always continuing to get better,” Head Coach Jo Koons said. “She definitely didn’t have her best first at bat, so I’m glad she made the adjustment in bat number two.”

Maxwell leads the team in runs and hits with 20 and 31, respectively.

In the fifth inning, Texas Tech closed out the game with right-handed pitcher Nijaree Canady, who struck out three ACU batters in a row. Canady added to her total strikeouts on the season to make it 119.

On the mound, Koons played three pitchers:

• Leah Meyer, two innings pitched, three earned runs.
• Alissa Snipes, one inning pitched, six earned runs.
• Makayla Valle, two innings pitched, zero earned runs.

Meyer started the game but was pulled in the top of the second inning in favor of Snipes, who gave up six earned runs, including a two-RBI home run. Koons relieved Snipes with Valle in the fourth inning. Valle gave up zero earned runs in eight batters faced.

All three pitchers failed to record a strikeout.

With conference play beginning for the Wildcats, Koons said their defensive play will be big for the team to gain momentum.

“We had a couple of double plays today,” she said. “Which is beneficial to the pitching staff anytime you can get two outs in one play, saves us on the defensive side of it.”

Next, ACU will travel to Stephenville on Thursday to play its second conference series of the season against Tarleton State.