Tarleton State Softball faces No. 24 and top seeded Grand Canyon in semifinals Friday afternoon following first ever WAC Tournament win for the Texans Thursday

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – After Tarleton State took care of business on Thursday morning shutting out California Baptist 5-0, the Texans now have a date with the No. 24 Lopes of Grand Canyon Friday afternoon where the winner between the top-two seeds moves straight into the Championship Saturday afternoon.
 
The Purple and White are 2-1 vs. the squad from Phoenix this season after handing the Lopes their first home series loss since 2022 and first conference loss since 2023. Tarleton State also shutout GCU for just the second time this season as they did so in Game 1 of the series back in late March. The Texans are the only WAC program to not only hand the Lopes a loss but handed them two marking their only drops in the WAC. The Purple and White also account for a third of the rivals Purple and White’s total losses as Grand Canyon sits at 44-6 on the season overall.
 
“I feel like we are a good matchup for Grand Canyon,” said head coach Mark Cumpian. “If we go in and take care of business early, we can put ourselves exactly where we want to be. This team really wants it and I think we have all the pieces to get the job done.”
 
In the last 27 games the Texans have outscored their opponents 138-65 averaging over five- runs per game. Across the 27 matchups, Tarleton State has scored five or more runs 13 different times.
 
Germain and Hill have been a constant power throughout this season both ranking nationally in multiple categories. Germain is currently second in doubles in the nation with 22 on the season putting her just two away from tying the programs single season record and three away from setting the new mark to beat. With her 22 doubles through 50 games, she is tied for first in doubles per game in the nation and leads the WAC. With all the offensive power from Germain, she is the sixth toughest to strike out in the nation as she strikes out just once every 53 plate appearances. Germain sits 28th in the nation in batting average hitting .440 and sits No. 2 in the WAC. She is also 34th in hits with 70 and ranks second among the WAC.
 
The senior third baseman through 50 games leads the team in eight different categories including batting average (.440), OPS (1.226), runs (44), hits (70), doubles (22), total bases (115), slugging % (.723) and on-base % (.503).
 
Hill who has caught 18 base runners stealing which puts her eighth in the nation and leads all of the WAC. She also sits fifth in the WAC in batting average hitting .390. Hill sits in the No. 3 spot in the WAC in hits with 64 thus far.
 
The senior catcher through 54 games leads the team in RBI’s with 38 and games started with 54 while she ranks second-best in batting average (.390), OPS (1.073), at-bats (164), hits (64), total bases (99), slugging % (.604) and walks (26).
 
Shelby Schultz has been a hitter’s worse nightmare all season as she helped guide Tarleton State to their best Division I regular season record of 34-20. Shelby Schultz heads into postseason play with a record of 15-4, the second most wins in the conference. In the nation as of May, 6, she ranks 12th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.06), 25th in strikeouts per seven innings (8.6) and 27th in total strikeouts (162). Shelby Schultz leads the WAC in all three of those categories as well. The left-hander is also tied for first in the WAC in saves with three with fellow Texan and teammate Alexa Rehmeier.
 
Through 31 appearances and 20 starts for the freshman ace, Shelby Schultz has struck out a team and WAC leading 162 batters while tossing seven complete games. She has taken control of the circle for 131.1 IP while earning three saves and tossing a individual and combine shutout for two on the season. The Temple, Texas, native, is the first freshman rock slinger in program history since 2017 to strikeout 100 would be hitters and became the first freshman in program history to strikeout 150 in a single season. She ranks seventh so far in single season strikeout total in program history with more games left to go.
 
First pitch on Friday afternoon is set for 1 p.m. PT/3 p.m. CT. The series will air live on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available. Fans can also tune in to Tarletonsports.com/listenlive to hear the home call and all the action live from Kyle Crews. Tickets for those of Texan Nation looking to support the Purple and White are also available.
 
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