KINGSVILLE, Texas— West Texas A&M University, the nation's leading home run hitting team, drilled three on Thursday afternoon as the Lady Buffs recorded a 7-3 win over the Colorado Mesa University Mavericks in the opening game of the NCAA Division II South Central Regional here at Texas A&M-University's Vernie and Blanche Hubert Field.
 
WTAMU Lead-off hitter Kylie Moore hit two, including a go-ahead 2-run shot in the bottom of the second during her 3-for-3 day, which advanced the nation's 10th-ranked and tournament No. 4 seed Lady Buffs (32-13) into Friday's winner's bracket.
 
The Mavericks, ranked 11th nationally and seeded fifth, had opened 1-0 and 3-1 leads in the middle of the first and second innings, respectively, but gave up the game's final six runs to drop into a must-win elimination game on Friday at 4:30 p.m. CDT (3:30 p.m. Mountain) against eighth-seeded Oklahoma Christian (38-15), which lost to No. 1 seeded and host Javelinas, 5-0 in the later first round game of the day.
 
CMU (45-10) has now lost three straight games for the first time since the opening weekend of the 2016 and will need to win four straight to continue their season.  The Mavericks had won 30 of their previous 31.
 
On Thursday, the Mavericks recorded seven hits in the game, including four in the opening two innings.
 
They had three in the first inning alone as things got off to a promising start.  Brooke Doumer led off the game with an infield single and quickly advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Kellie Mrofcza and a wild pitch.  Doumer then scored on an AnnMarie Torres single to center.
 
Kaila Jacobi then hit a 1-out single to put two runners on with just one out.
 
However, Torres was then hit on her way to third on a Bailey Kleespies' fielder's choice as the Lady Buffs got out of a potential big inning.
 
Moore then doubled to begin the bottom half of the inning and scored the tying run on a delayed double steal with Shanna McBroom.
 
However, the Mavericks would re-gain momentum in the second taking a 2-1 lead on a throwing error that allowed Jordyn Hays to score from second after being hit by a pitch and moving to second on a Sarah Staudle groundout.
 
Alexandria Dufour reached on that error and then scored CMU's third run on a Mrofcza double.
 
However, the Lady Buffs countered in the bottom of the second with a 3-base throwing error moments before Moore sent her eventual game-winning homer down the left field line.
 
The Mavericks then managed just one hit and two base runners in the next three innings falling behind 5-3 through five after Moor hit her second home run with one out in the fourth.
 
CMU would get singles from Hays and pinch-hitter Alexa Samuels in the sixth but could not break through.  The Lady Buffs then tacked on two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth and set the Mavs down in order in the seventh to complete the victory.
 
Jacobi led the Mavericks with two hits while Mrofcza had the team's only extra-base knock.
 
Shayne Starkey went the distance in the circle for WTAMU giving up just earned run to improve to 16-5.
 
McKenzie Surface got the start for the Mavs and fell to 20-3 after giving up six hits and four earned runs in 3 1/3 innings before Kimbri Herring came on in relief.  They combined for five strikeouts.