Trinity Tiger softball had an eventful first four home games, going 3-1 in their first two home series of the 2024 season. Following a season where pitching was the team’s kryptonite, Trinity pitched at the top of their game, keeping the Howard Payne Yellow Jackets scoreless and putting the brakes on an East Texas Baptist Tigers team ranked no. 16 in Division III.
The first two-game series against Howard Payne University was not originally meant to be played at Trinity. The series was initially scheduled for Feb. 10, but rain in Brownwood, Texas meant that field conditions were too poor for the Yellow Jackets to host. Instead, the game would come to San Antonio on Feb. 13, marking Trinity’s home-opening series.
The game started slow for Trinity and HPU as pitchers Jordan Arce and Bree Cason pitched a masterclass, with both teams scoreless heading into the bottom of the sixth inning. Junior Sydney Watson broke the tie open with a leadoff double in the sixth, eventually scoring thanks to two errors by Howard Payne. Sophomore Angela Baltzell also scored thanks to an error and two sacrifice plays, earning the second of Trinity’s two runs in the 2-0 shutout.
Arce pitched a complete-game shutout, earning her second win of the season after her performance in Trinity’s 5-4 victory over Concordia University to start the season.
Game two for Trinity wasn’t just another shutout but also a record-setting victory for first-year Cameron Bishop. Despite this being her first-ever start at the college level, the left-handed pitcher dominated the Yellow Jackets all night and opened the game with a strikeout. Bishop collected an impressive 11 strikeouts en route to her first career win, allowing just five hits and zero walks all night. Bishop, who allowed half as many runners on base as she struck out, became the first Tiger since Sydney Friday in 2010 to achieve a complete game shutout in her first career start. Offensively, Trinity played well, earning four runs in the win.
The biggest threat to Trinity’s early-season schedule was the originally scheduled home opener against East Texas Baptist University. A perennial playoff contender in one of the most difficult conferences in Division III Softball (the American Southwest Conference or ASC), East Texas Baptist blew out Trinity in their meetings last season, cruising to 11-1 and 13-1 wins that were both ended by the run rule in the fifth inning.
Things looked great to start the opening game for Trinity, as they attacked first-year starter Haylie Stum to finish the first inning with a 4-0 lead. However, things wouldn’t last for Trinity as Bishop, the starter, left in the fourth inning after giving up five runs — three of them earned. First-year Josephine Koelewyn struggled in relief, surrendering an additional six runs in her 2.2 innings pitched. Jordan Arce, known for her two-way ability, had an offensive game to remember, scoring not one, but two, home runs during the first game to keep the score competitive. Arce became the first Tiger since Marina Delaluna in 2021 to have two home runs in a single game, tying the program’s single-game record. Despite the fireworks, Trinity couldn’t secure the victory, falling in the first game 11-6.
The second game saw Arce, the game one hero, step into the circle to pitch. It was a rough start for Trinity as they were held hitless through the first two innings, unable to stop the ETBU Tigers as they amassed an early 3-0 lead. The bats lit up for Trinity in the third inning as they had five straight runners get on base, scoring three runs with two outs in the inning. The Tigers in maroon followed that up with a four-run fourth inning that saw Trinity take a 7-4 lead. Arce held strong in the circle after a season that saw seven of their 28 losses last season come after having a lead in the third inning or later. She would only surrender two more runs — both unearned — before the seventh inning, capping off another complete game in the 7-6 victory.
This win was the first over a ranked non-conference opponent since last season’s 3-1 win at no. 18 Mary Hardin-Baylor, and it moved Trinity up to a 4-2 record in the early season. The team wasn’t phased by key losses at the catcher position either, following a pre-season injury to Junior Abigail Miller and a sprained thumb by Senior Dawson Dabboussi in the first game of the season.
It’ll be a while before the Tigers have to start the bus and go on the road again, as they will host 18 of their next 19 games. The team will play the Hardin-Simmons Cowgirls twice on Friday, Feb. 23, before playing the McMurry University Warhawks — another Abilene, Texas, opponent — in a two-game series on Saturday, Feb. 24. First Pitch on Friday is scheduled for 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. for games one and two respectively, while the Saturday action will start at noon and 2 p.m.
